A Fear of Change
by Diego Zeyon
Summary: Rebirth fic. Joshua had never really cared for baby Pokémon, but he headed to his cousin's house to watch her first egg hatch. He didn't make it... But he still made it, after a fashion. 09/24/09: Character submission reopened! Check ch. 1.
1. Paradox

A/N: Look! I've joined a fad!

This story written with the permission of srgeman.

This is a rebirth story, and is mainly being written so I can seriously try writing as a human for once. That is to say, almost all of my other stories have narrators that are not human (with the exception of one, for one chapter so far). If you're reading this, odds are you've already read srgeman's _A Little Night Music._ If you haven't, and are just some poor lost soul looking for a good read, read that before you read this. There's more to it, and, what the heck, it's just a great story. Read it. _Read it._

That said, for those of you who know what I'm talking about, the rules of rebirth work in this story as well. If you're not sure what I mean... well, you'll see a little ways in.

Normally I'm not one for the all-Pokémon-lay-eggs thing, but I use it here simply to maintain consistancy with the rest of these stories that I know of.

Now. I already know what the main character is going to become; but I don't know what other Pokémon I want to join "his" party. Suggestions? I'll leave a character submission form at the bottom if you'd like to be detailed about it.

As a disclaimer, I do not own Pokémon or any official related trademarks. The idea and concept of the rebirth story are credited to srgeman. I do own any original characters of my own--Joshua Card, Karen Ashlocke, Myst the Ninetales, to name a few. This story does tie in vaguely with another, unfinished one of mine, but you may or may not be able to spot it.

Also: The beliefs of the characters do not necessarily reflect the beliefs of the author.

Giratina and Arceus are referred to as "it" within the story as they are technically above gender.

I use the following formatting system (and it's slightly different from my normal one, so pay attention):

Plain text, like this, denotes narrative text, part of the story.

Text in double quotes, "like this," denotes a human speaking.

Text in italicized and in double quotes, "_like this,_" denotes untranslated Pokémon speech--that is to say, what humans hear.

Text italicized and in single quotes, '_like this,_' denotes a Pokémon speaking.

Text italicized, _like this_, denotes thought; if it's in bold, _**like this**_, it's emphasized, like putting italics in narrative text.

Text italicized and set off by forwardslashes, _/like this/_ denotes telepathy, and if it's in bold, _**/like this/**_ then it's one of the powerful Legendaries speaking (generally Arceus, Giratina, Dialga, or Palkia)

A line break denotes a time lapse; a line break preceeded [following] by A/N denotes a beginning author's note (like all of this), while one succeeded [followed] by A/N denotes an ending author's note.

I've rambled enough. Onto the story!

* * *

**A Fear of Change**

**Chapter I: Paradox**

"It's gonna hatch soon!" she insisted, pouting and looking a lot younger than her fifteen years. I sighed, tilting my head toward the videophone monitor.

"Karen," I groaned. "It's an egg. You see 'em hatch all the time, my uncle--your dad--owns that Breeding Center."

"Josh!"

"Joshua," I corrected automatically. I was one of those people that can't stand being nicknamed.

"Joshua," she tried again. "It's special. This time it's _my _egg. I got it from its mother, I've raised it this far... You're my cousin, for God's sake. You're in town. Please?"

I loved her. I really did. I always had. She was my favorite little cousin. But she wanted me to come over to watch an egg hatch?

There followed a brief internal struggle that went something like this.

_It's an egg. Baby Pokémon. Woo, so what?_

_She's my cousin._

_I don't care. I don't care about baby Pokémon--only their evolutions._

_But she's my __**cousin**_.

_It's eleven o'clock at night!_

"Joshua?" asked Karen, her blue eyes wide.

_She really cares. She wants me to see this._

"Fine... I'll come," I said grudgingly, putting a smile on my face, and on hers. "I... guess you only get your first Pokémon once, huh?" It was also a great leap forward for her, since she'd been a Poképhobic until she was ten, and still hadn't gotten over it entirely.

"Thank you, Josh!" she cried giddily, cutting the connection off before I could remind her, again, that my name was Joshua.

I shrugged and stood up, yawning. I glanced at the clock. Yep, about 11:04 at night. Why did births always happen at the inconvenient times? Not to mention that the Ashlockes--Karen's family--lived on the western edge of Azalea Town, and I was closer to the eastern edge.

I stepped out of the hotel and into the night. It was humid--really humid. It must have just rained. I paused for a moment and got my directions straight, then I started walking.

I was--and am--one of those people who like to think while they walk. Sometimes, especially if I've taken a particular path to a place before, I can essentially tune myself out and think while I walk. This has its advantages in open spaces, like Routes, but in the city, it's dangerous. I was continuing to argue with myself over the point of watching a Pokémon hatch--what about it could possible fascinate people so? It sounded disgusting.

I remembered myself in time to step around another pedestrian.

I didn't have any Pokémon myself. I'd only come to Azalea Town to visit with Kurt, the Ballmaker, for a special order from the new Mahogany Gym Leader--my elder brother--and I'd done it in the company of some elderly Trainer from Fiore who enjoyed tea and kept a bunch of Growlithe.

I paused at a street corner and leaned on the pole, waiting for the traffic to pass by.

It was somewhat shameful, I realized, that I hadn't thought at all to see the Ashlockes while I was in town. My task list had been, essentially, get in, give Kurt the appricorn, get the Ball, and get back to Mahogany. Well, that didn't matter now, I decided bluntly. I was going to see them now.

The pedestrian light flickered to _Walk._ I began to walk.

And then _something_ happened. I was midway through the crosswalk when I quite suddenly saw something else.

A great lavender-and-black-and-gold dragon, soaring through a space that could only be described as _backwards. _It glanced at me, red eyes boring into my own. I froze.

There was a sound like screaming, and tires screeching. Something very large and heavy hit my side, and the image was broken, and so was I.

After a moment, though, I pushed myself up onto my knees, cursing.

"What the hell, man?" I grunted, turning around. Then I froze again.

There was the car--a nondescript, red thing, one of the most common machines out there. Inside it were three people, each slowly looking dumbstruck, and all of them obviously drunk. In front of the car, however, was me.

Or, at least, it was a damn good copy. Spread-eagled, green eyes lifeless, spiky black hair looking largely unnaffected. Did that shirt really look that wierd on me, or was it just the fact that I was...

Uh...

"Life sucks sometimes, doesn't it?"

"Ah... Yeah," I responded absently. Then I spun around, and came face to face with a pink cat. At least, I thought it was. There was something a little off about it--not bad-off, but different.

"Mew, at your service," said the cat, raising his tail to his eye in a kind of mock salute.

"Ah... I-if you say so," I stammered. "L-listen... Is that--?"

"Yep!" said Mew bluntly. "That's you."

"S-so... I'm...?"

"Yep!"

"What the hell, man!" I screamed. Mew recoiled, shaking his head violently. "How can you be so cheerful!?"

Mew tilted his head thoughtfully, then zoomed around toward my body. I kept my eyes firmly on the cat.

"Well. Because you're dead, but you're not really _dead._"

I didn't bother to respond to this.

"If I told you you could come back, that I could give you a second chance," contined Mew after a moment, obviously annoyed that he had to explain further, "would you take it?"

"Ye--!" I caught myself and held up a hand. "Wait, wait, wait..." I thought for a moment. "Aren't Mew supposed to be tricksters?"

Mew's ears drooped; he looked hurt. "Well... Way to generalize the species, man. Can't a Mew have a heart?"

I considered this. "I...I guess."

"Besides," he continued. "Giratina was acting out of line. Technically you weren't supposed to die tonight."

"I wasn't?"

"Nope." No further explanation was offered.

"But can't you just...turn back time? You're like a god, right?"

"Me? Personally? No. Well, yes, I'm a god, but no, I can't turn back time. The only two who can don't have any jurisdiction over death unless Arceus says so. And It doesn't."

At some point the scene surrouding us had faded out. I wasn't even standing any more--I was floating.

"So? Take it or leave it."

"What the catch!?" I said quickly.

Mew smiled. "I knew you'd ask. See, death isn't really my jurisdiction either, but I sort of make it mine when Giratina decides to act like It owns the whole business. I can't bring you back as a human."

"What!?"

"Well, that leaves you only one alternative, doesn't it?"

I was hyperventilating. Why? I didn't need to breath any more. A reflex? "A.... A P-Pokémon?"

"Bingo!" Mew zoomed around me again. "So. Take it, or leave it? Make it quick, I gotta split soon."

My head was spinning. Rebirth? As a Pokémon?

From an _egg_?

"No," was on the tip of my tongue when it reversed course and became "Yes." I was surprised, but only for a moment. Who wouldn't, in the end, choose life over death?

"Alrighty!" said Mew. "Have fun, buddy!"

He vanished. And suddenly I was cold...

Cold... Why was I cold? Like I was in a freezer, or in a blizzard...

So cold... So...

...

...

So... warm...

So comfortable. Ahh...

I was suspended in some sort of soft, warm goo. I wasn't breathing, but I didn't really need to yet. I was so comfortable here...

There was a muffled noise from _outside_ where I was. There was an outside? What was it like? Was it comfy, too?

It sounded like someone crying.

Blunt and harsh I may be somtimes, but I have a soft spot. I don't like it when people cry. I always try to comfort them. This was an observation in retrospect.

At the time, all I thought was, _It's not right... Shouldn't be sad... Be happy..._

I reached out and tapped the edge of my little universe. It was hard, but it felt brittle. I pushed on it.

"Karen, it's hatching!"

I stopped to catch my metaphorical breath, then tried again.

_Don't!_

I pushed.

_Be!_

I pushed harder.

_...__**Sad!**_

My egg cracked, and I tumbled out into the world.

It was _cold. _I began to shiver instantly, and let out a feeble cry. If it was this cold all the time, not like the warm inside my egg, then I could understand someone being sad.

Something warm--two somethings--reached down and picked me up. I couldn't see yet, I couldn't smell, but I could hear and feel just fine. My head was placed gently onto someone's shoulder. I continued to cry weakly, and so did the person on whose shoulder I was resting.

"Karen, here." A man's voice, gentle. "Give him to me. You'll only upset him as you are right now."

A sniff. "Right..." I knew that voice...

I was taken off of the first person's shoulder by two more, much larger, warm things. I still couldn't open my eyes.

"There, little guy, it's okay," said the man's voice gently. I didn't like his voice as much as the others. Blindly I tried to turn around, to find the other person. "You want Karen back?"

I reached out, trying to find the other warm spot. I was given back to the first person.

She sniffed again. "You're sad too, aren't you, little guy?"

I nuzzled the warm spot. Her shoulder? _Don't...be sad..._

"Born... five minutes after we hear about Joshua's d-death," she stammered, and began to cry in earnest, a tear dripping down onto my leaf.

Joshua!? ...And a leaf!?

My eyes opened at that precise moment, and I forced myself away from her shoulder, tumbling down into her lap.

"H-hey," said she, picking me up and holding me in front of her face. "C-careful, huh? You aren't strong enough to move around by yourself yet..."

Nor were my eyes exceptionally strong yet, but I focused on the face of the first human I'd met and realized who I was staring at, and a moment later what I was.

I'd made it to the hatching anyway. The person holding my was my cousin, Karen Ashlocke. And I was her Chikorita.

* * *

A/N EDIT 09/24/09: Character submissions have been reopened. Yes, SkyeGavin, I'm calling your bluff.

Information that I will require for characters:

Status: Trainer / Reborn / Regular Pokémon  
Age: For Pokémon, their level of maturity (Behave like an 11-year old? Behave like a 30-year old?). For reborns, I will need the age they died at as well as the age of the Pokémon body they inhabit.  
Gender:  
Species: Human / Pokémon -- What kind of Pokémon?  
Personality/Backstory/Additional Features: As much or as little as you feel like submitting.


	2. Forlorn

A/N: My author notes have a tendency of being either too long or too short. I will try to condense them so that the bulk of the document is the story proper.

Thank you, the five of you that have reviewed so far, at least at the time this was written.

Onward.

**Chapter II: Forlorn**

Before we get back to the story proper, I guess I should explain how I felt, at the time, about Chikorita. They were cute, yes; and I'd done my research, and decided I liked it best of the starters in all four mainstream regions, aesthetically anyway. The trouble was that they were the only Grass starter that never gained a second type. It remained weak to the variety of types, most of them common, that Grass types traditionally faced--Fire, Ice, Bug, Flying, and Poison.

In short, they were cute, but in battle, they were crap.

Of course, that was before I became biased.

Karen held me in front of her for another moment as I tried in vain to actually focus on her entire face. Then I was back on her shoulder. I attempted to pet her shoulder with one of my arms--forelegs--but I still couldn't control them well enough to do so.

She was no longer crying, but I could feel her shaking, and more than that I could feel her _fear._ They say a Pokémon bonds with the first being they see--human or otherwise. This is absolutely true. Had I been human, I would have felt bad, comforted her, maybe sung a song or two to cheer her up. As a Pokémon, I didn't just feel bad for her, her despair was a black weight crushing my weak little body.

"Karen," came the man's voice again. Now that I knew where I was, I recognized Uncle Ren's voice. "You're scaring him..."

'_N-n-no,_' I stammered weakly. '_I don't w-want y-y-you r-right now..._' I tried to shake my head side to side and found I couldn't, but I felt Karen lean away from Ren as her father tried to take me back.

"Please, Daddy..."

'_P-please, U-uncle..._' I pawed at Karen's shoulder weakly.

Karen stroked my leaf gently, still shaking.

"I...I was the one who asked him to come..."

"Karen," started Ren, but my voice, feeble as it was, cut him off.

'_No,_' I insisted, unable to move my head to look at her. '_Don't feel bad. Not your fault. You couldn't have known..._'

There was a padding sound and I became aware of a Pokémon behind me as a sigh that sounded alot like "_Nine!"_ was given off.

At that moment, there was a sound like a baby Growlithe growling. I realized I was hungry.

"B-better feed you, huh..." said Karen, and somehow her fear shrank. This was a task; she could use it to block the pain for a little while. I was shifted to her lap, and my hind legs draped off of her leg and onto some soft fabric. Probably the ridiculously comfortable lounge chair.

A bottle, which looked like it was just about half as big as I was, hove into view in the grip of Karen's suddenly rediculously large hand. Reflexively I latched onto it, and was merrily sucking away when the absurdity of the entire situation finally hit me.

I had just been hit by a car, less than ten minutes ago. I had died. I had talked to a Mew. I had been born the Pokémon I'd been coming to see be born, and now I was drinking baby-Pokémon formula from a bottle.

Yeah. Right. This was a dream, an hallucination. I was still lying on the ground in front of that car. If only I could pinch myself...

"There, better?" said Karen after a moment. I felt myself nodding. The bottle was removed, and I, finally feeling like I could move my own limbs, dropped the rest of my body off of her leg and looked out at what I could see of the rest of the room.

Or, I tried to. What actually happened was that I found myself staring down the muzzle of a Ninetales. A very, very large Ninetales, or so it seemed. Chikorita are the tallest of the starters, but next to this Ninetales I felt tiny. But Ninetales can do that to you no matter how big you are.

She growled.

'_Bad dream now,_' I squeaked, backing away.

"Myst!" said Karen and Ren sharply, in unison.

"Don't scare him, alright?" Ren continued, reaching forward and putting a hand on Myst's back.

'_This is not a dream,_' she said after a moment, her ruby eyes boring into mine almost like Giratina's had.

I tried to say something and managed to squeak "_Chiko..."_

"Myst!" said Ren forcefully.

'_...What are you?_' she asked quietly, her breath almost unbearably hot. Then she blinked and walked away, leaving me dazed. Ren, looking irritated, got up and went after her.

Karen reached down and absently began to stroke my leaf again. Her sadness jumped up in notches as Ren snapped at Myst from another room, obviously thinking the two of us couldn't hear.

"I know you can understand me. You're the cleverest Pokémon I've ever seen, and I know you're gentle, you always have been. Don't go up to babies like that--especially Grass types. Now's not a good time, alright?"

'_Do not lose yourself in the grief,'_ muttered Myst.

"My nephew's just died. Karen's cousin. She's feeling bad enough as it is, and that's making the Chikorita feel uneasy. The last thing he needs is to have a heart attack ten minutes after his birth."

'_I do not trust him._'

"You deal with little Pokémon all the time, and you've never done anything like that. Don't do it again, alright?"

I realized for the first time in this life that Ren couldn't understand her, and that I _could_. It was unnerving.

'_...As you wish, Raymond-sama._'

There was a knock at the door. Ren stomped past the lounge chair, stress radiating from him like heat. I could not see clearly to the door, but I realized who it was anyway when Ren exclaimed "Kyra!"

Karen gasped, "Mother," and stood up, rushing to the door. I was left alone.

"I came as soon as I could, the traffic out of Goldenrod was terrible," my aunt began. "I... I haven't heard, is Joshua...?"

'_You could have picked a better time,' _said Myst suddenly. She had appeared without my noticing next to the chair. I set my forelegs on the arm and looked over at her.

'_Tell me about it..._' I responded, my leaf drooping. This was so...unreal. And awkward.

'_You will forgive me, I hope...?'_

_'What?'_ My thoughts were still on Karen, and I'd been wishing she'd come back over here. '_Oh... Y-yeah...'_

Myst paused, obviously feeling awkward. That was somewhat funny, I found, because I'd heard from Ren before that she hadn't been awkward at all since she evolved. '_I...am vulnerable to strange urges. I felt I had to know what you are._'

"_Chikorita,_" I said by way of explanation.

Myst huffed. '_You look like one, anyway. But you smell..._' She paused. '_The one they mourn, the boy named Joshua... You smell like him._'

'_I...I do?' _I smelled myself, and decided that I didn't smell any different. Then I realized that that was the problem.

She looked at me. I flinched, but there was no power in her gaze this time. '_Newborn Pokémon do not smell like humans.'_

What was I supposed to say? I still wasn't sure of the situation myself. After a moment she leaned forward and gently licked my leaf.

'_Your tongue's hot,_' I complained, pulling away.

'_An unfortunate fact,'_ she said gently, padding around to the front of the chair. '_But you must be cleaned. You are still covered in fluid.' _

Was I? And apparently she'd decided to change the subject, too. She began to lick the rest of me, gently.

'_They would have cleaned you themselves, but their shock... I am surprised they have done as much for you as they have._'

I squirmed, uncomfortable, but she was right.

'_I am sure they will find out sooner or later, but in the meantime... Turn around, please._'

I complied. She began to clean my other side.

'_S-so... You're Myst, right?_' I didn't want to say anything about my former existence to her. I wasn't sure how she'd react, and I was uncomfortable enough around a Fire type without it actually breathing fire.

'_Yes._ _The gir's name is Karen, and the man's is Ren. The woman coming through the door--'_ (This was true, as Kyra had finally passed the treshold, crying) '_--her name is Kyra.'_

Silence for a moment. Myst raised one of her tails and began to dry me with it.

'_Of course, I do not imagine you have a name. Doubtless Karen will arrange that._'

I did. It was Joshua Card. But I wasn't going to tell her that.

'_There,_' she continued, lowering her tail. '_Is that any better?'_

_'Y-yeah, a lot,_' I said, turning around to face her again. '_Th-thanks...'_

"Myst?" said Karen, and I realized she'd been standing there for awhile. She reached down and picked me up, and I leaned into her shoulder again. "There. Missed me, huh?" There was a false cheeriness in her voice. Her father was a Breeder, for God's sake, you'd think she'd have known that you can't lie to a Pokémon about your emotions. She began to walk.

I murmured into her shoulder, not really saying anything, trying to reassure her. Then I remembered something else about Chikorita. I pushed myself back slightly and leaned toward her face, fanning my leaf gently. I wasn't really sure how I knew how to move it, but I did.

She inhaled. Then she exhaled.

"Thank you," she breathed. "Chikorita have such a calming scent..."

We began walking upstairs.

She began to murmer quietly, but it was mostly nonsensical baby chatter. I realized, suddenly, that she had to be exhausted. It had to be nigh on 11:30 or 11:45 by now. Karen stepped into her room, where I was assaulted by a combination of general girl-smells that I could not describe any better than that. The room was dark, and I couldn't remember anything about it from when I'd been here as a human. I wasn't sure I'd ever even come into her room before.

She flopped, or perhaps drooped, onto her bed, curling up into a fetal position.

"Don't want to think about it," she breathed. "Don't want to think about it until tomorrow..."

I nuzzled her as best I could, and she opened up slightly and drew me into a hug.

"Can I call you Josh?" she asked.

I let out a small, surprised noise. Why would she... She wasn't going to name me after myself, was she?

"I know it doesn't make sense, but... Joshua, my cousin, he died a few minutes before you were born. He didn't like being called Josh, but..." She sniffed. My heart melted. "I-I mean, I'm not trying to replace him or anything, but..."

But you couldn't feel better about something if you ignored it, could you?

'_Yes,_' I said quietly, fanning her with my leaf again.

"Thank you," she breathed, almost crushing me with her hug. I struggled for a moment, and she relented. "I-I'm sorry..."

'_Shh..._'

"G...good night, Josh. And..." She rolled over, picking me up and taking me with her. I saw a window, but nothing out of it. The sky must have been overcast. But nevertheless that was where I knew Karen to be looking when she finished. "Good-bye, Joshua..."

Almost instantly she dropped off into sleep, her arm curling around me protectively. I snuggled in as best I could without feeling awkward (she _was _my cousin), and stared out the window myself for a few minutes.

Red-and-blue flashes came by a few times, but I heard no sirens. I knew they were just coming back from the place where I died, and I echoed Karen's words and cast them out into the night, deciding at last that it wasn't--couldn't be--a dream.

'_Good-bye... Joshua Card._'

* * *

A/N: There may or may not be an ending author's note; if there's something that needs to be explained further, I'll explain it here.

Comments? Questions? Suggestions? Reviews are nice.

Until next time.


	3. The Sacrifice

Pokémon and all related official material do not belong to me.

* * *

**Chapter III: The Sacrifice**

"So?"

I started, realized I was floating again, and then spun myself around. As I expected, Mew had shown up again.

"So... What?" I asked, and heard myself speaking English again.

"What do you think? Nice girl, huh?"

"She's my _cousin,_" I said carefully.

"She's your Trainer," he corrected me smoothly. "Or, will be, when she officially gets her liscence."

"Why her? There had to be another egg in the world about to hatch..."

"Would you have cared about another person as much as you did Karen?" asked Mew.

"Well--" I stopped. "...No."

"And she needed comfort. She needed someone to care."

"What about Myst?"

"The Ninetales? Sure, but she's Ren's Pokémon, not Karen's. Besides, you were free, right?"

I nodded, scowling slightly.

"Something's bugging you," he observed.

"Well... Why are you here? Why are you talking to me? I thought the business would have been finished the instant my egg hatched."

Mew tapped his chin--or rather the closest equivalent--thoughtfully. "You know, I'm surprised how rationally and calmly you're taking this. I've been screamed at, attacked a few times..."

"You're avoiding my question."

"Observant, too!" He chuckled. "I tend to pop back in every now and again, just to make sure you're... you know... adapting. Which you're doing quite well. You're the most Pokémon-like not-Pokémon I've seen in a long time."

"...I honestly can't say I believe you."

"That's a good thing, though," said Mew slyly. "After all, who'd want to trust a god that didn't lie, just a little?"

"So you admit--"

"I admit nothing, Josh."

"But--"

'_...But...'_

"...Josh?"

I opened my eyes, and was a Chikorita again.

Damn.

I stretched weakly and yawned, realizing an instant later that I was famished. Karen had apparently rolled back around in the night, and I had gone to her other side--away from the window. This may have served a purpose if the sun had risen in the west (that was the direction her window faced), but I had apparently been too far asleep to notice.

I tried to shake myself and managed to at least move my head. Had I had a dream? I couldn't really remember. As I tried to stand up, the combination of unfamiliarity with four limbs and the fact that I was standing on an extremely soft bed resulted in me flopping forward onto my face with an ungraceful '_Oof!_'

"Hey, careful," continued Karen. The quality of her voice suggested that she herself had just woken up. "Don't try to walk yet, Josh, wait until you've got somethin' solid to stand on..." She yawned and sat up, staring off into space for a moment.

'_Uh, hey, Earth to Karen..._' I muttered, my hunger making me irritated.

"Uh?" She blinked, then looked over my head and, after a moment, gasped. "Look at the time. It's almost eight, you've got to be famished..."

'_Just a little._'

"I should have fed you hours ago... Hold on, okay?"

She stood up, stayed still for a moment as if to make sure of her balance, and then left the room. As she did, another Pokémon came in, this one smaller than I, with a bright-yellow and black body. It bounced excitedly as it saw me.

'_Baby, baby, baby!_' The Pichu scampered further into the room and up onto Karen's bed. '_A new little baby!_'

'_Uh, hey,_' I muttered weakly.

'_What are you, huh? Huh? I don't remember ever seeing something like you before.'_

_"Chikorita."_

_'Cool! I'm a Pichu. That's a leaf, right? Cool! Can I touch it?'_

At least he was somewhat polite. '_...Gently._'

He prodded it. '_Wow!'_

Wow. A leaf. Right.

'_I'm Isaac. What's your name, huh?'_

_'Joshu... I mean, Josh.'_

_'Everyone's sad,_' commented Isaac, sitting down beside me. '_That's funny, because everyone's normally happy when a new baby arrives._'

'_I guess... I came at a bad time._'

Isaac nodded his huge head. '_They'll feel better later.'_

_'You... aren't a negative thinker, are you?_'

"Isaac," said Karen, coming back into the room. "Don't bug him, he's hungry."

'_Okay, Karen. Sorry._' The Pichu bounced off of the bed and scampered out of the room. The girl took the Pichu's place, and I was tranferred to her lap as I had been last night. The bottle was offered, and I, knowing that was all I would get, accepted it. Truth be told it didn't taste bad, but I was quickly becoming embarrassed. I was being bottlefed by my younger cousin...

"That was Isaac," Karen explained as I suckled. "He's one of the infant Pichu that roam around our house. Man, 'chus reproduce quickly..."

There was a pause. A Pidgey greeted the morning outside Karen's window.

"Anyway, Josh... I'm sorry about last night. Must have been uncomfortable to have been born in the midst of all that chaos..." She stroked my leaf as she talked. "I guess I haven't even introduced myself yet..." She had, when I was a human, and Myst as well had told me who she was, but that didn't matter. "I'm Karen. And I guess you could consider me your mother, though I'm not, really."

She continued to talk amiably, but once again I found the situation catching up to me, and only half listened as I thought about the last ten hours of my life. Most of them I'd spent sleeping. But the period between my birth and my first sleep... What had I been doing? I felt irritated with myself for so blindly acting like I thought I should have acted. It couldn't have been instinct, because most scientists believed Pokémon didn't reason, at least to the extent humans did, and what was I doing right now? Reasoning with myself.

Besides, I still didn't feel like a Pokémon. I wasn't sure how I'd managed to move on my own last night, but I couldn't do it now. The idea of walking on four legs baffled me, and I hadn't even given it a try yet.

And then Myst had told me that I smelled like...well, like myself.

_Give me a second chance, huh, Mew? Way to make one life interfere with the other..._

I supposed I'd just have to grow into it.

"I'm sorry for not feeding you," continued Karen sadly. "I was just so tired... I won't miss a feeding again, alright? I promise."

I made an agreeable noise as well as I could with a bottle in my mouth.

She stroked my leaf. I sensed a pattern forming, and as she began speaking again I realized I was right.

"You're not even a day old yet, little guy, and yet you've already experienced a lot of sadness... Life can be so cruel."Her eyes weren't on me, but past me, into the hallway, though I could tell she wasn't really looking at anything. "But... I'll do my best to keep you happy, alright?"

She would always absently rub my leaf when my death... _Joshua's_ death, I supposed... was on her mind.

I pulled myself away from the bottle--I was feeling full anyway--and awkwardly put my forelegs up on her shoulder and nuzzled her.

"You're gonna do the same for me, huh?" She hugged me. It felt strange to be unable to hug back.

'_I promise._'

And we stayed that way, her arms wrapped tightly around my fourteen-pound body, for several minutes. Neither of us said anything more. But there are times when you just don't need to say anything.

"Um, Karen..."

My cousin looked up. "Oh, Mom..."

There was a hesitant breath from behind me, and then I heard Kyra Ashlocke enter the room. A moment later I felt Karen's body tilt slightly as her mother sat down on the bed near her.

There was silence for another few minutes, both knowing what the other was thinking about but neither wanting to say anything about it.

"So," said my aunt eventually. "The egg hatched, huh?"

"Um." Karen was silent for a moment, apparently collecting her thoughts. "Yeah... You haven't met him yet, have you?" Karen wrapped her arms around my midsection carefully and I was handed off to my aunt. "I don't think he's got walking down quite yet, so..."

Kyra set me down in her lap, and I looked up at her plaintively.

Aunt Kyra scrutinized me as I did the same to her.

She was my blood relative--my father's younger sister--but we couldn't have looked any more different. Her hair was long and blonde and curly; mine--and my father's--had been and were a brownish-black, both of us liked to keep it short and spiked. Her eyes were brown. Mine had been green.

She wasn't ugly, by any means. She was in her mid-thirties, but looked younger. Karen looked nothing like her, I realized, the fact becoming somehow significant. Karen took after her father--straight black hair, blue eyes, slight.

She was not involved much in my uncle's day care business, having taken her father's place as some higher-up manager in the Radio Tower in Goldenrod. She also fancied herself an author, but I had never seen any of her books published.

"Have you given him a name yet?" asked Kyra.

"U-um..." Karen trailed off. "W-well, last night I decided I'd call him Josh..."

"Are you sure...? I mean..."

'_Keep it,'_ I insisted quietly.

"What was that?" asked Karen, her gaze switching to me. "...Do you like your name?"

I nodded fervantly.

"See?"

I looked back up at Aunt Kyra. Her lipsed pursed slightly, but she nodded. "Maybe it's best." She stood up, and I was set carefully back on Karen's bed. "Uncle Kevin and Ryan will be coming around today."

My father and brother. Coming here, rather than having my body sent back to Mahogany?

"Why are they coming here?" asked Karen. "I mean--"

"I know," said Kyra. "They're going to take his body back to Mahogany Town themselves, for the funeral..."

Karen sighed. Her hand went to my leaf again. I'd never noticed how quickly someone could form a habit.

"Um... I know you planned to leave on your journey as soon as...um... Josh," and she said my name with the utmost care, as it if were a priceless vase she did not want to drop, "was ready, but... Do you want to attend the funeral?"

The way she talked about it, it sounded as if it had already been scheduled. But my father was a meticulous organizer. He had probably had the funeral organized before he even allowed himself to feel grief.

Stroke. Stroke. "...Yes." Karen's voice broke. "H-he was like a b-brother to me... I... I..."

"Well... Everything's closed today," continued Kyra after a moment. I figured she was talking about the Day Care. If I recalled, today was Wednesday, which tended to be a quiet day anyway. "You'll only have to worry about taking care of Josh."

Stroke. "A...alright." Stroke, stroke, stroke...

It was really quite relaxing, even if Karen was feeling terrible. So relaxing, in fact, that I began to drop off. I realized, an instant before I lost consciousness, that I could no longer feel Karen's sadness, even though I knew it was there.

"Sorry about that," said Mew as my eyes opened again and I found myself in the void. "You know, not finishing the last conversation."

I grunted. "Not as if you were going to say anything anyway..."

Mew chuckled.

"Tell me something."

"Mmm?" he asked, floating leisurely around me, eyes closed.

"Last night. When I was born. I felt like a Pokémon, I could move, a little, I could feel Karen's emotion. I can't now. What happened?"

Mew made a motion that I supposed was equivalent to a shrug. "Don't know what you're talking about, Joshua..."

"I think you do."

One blue eye cracked open and looked at me. "Do you?"

I reached out--in these dreams, or visions, or whatever, I still had arms--and snatched Mew's tail. "You do, and you're hiding it."

"Hey, hey dude, not cool, let go," said Mew desperately. "Seriously, dude, let go."

"Tell me."

"Not afraid to torture somebody, huh? That doesn't sound like a traditional trait in a Chikorita--oww!" I had put pressure on his tail. "I'll tell you. Just _let go!_"

I relinquished his tail. He brought it up between his paws and blew on it. "Geez, man! How would you like it if somebody picked you up by your leaf, huh?" I had to suppose that would hurt royally, but I wasn't about to feel pity for him. I didn't trust him yet. "Alright, see, it's like this...

"Your destiny's not set in stone. You could have said no back there, and I woulda sent you on to the afterlife, quick as that. The Chikorita would still have been born, but it wouldn't have been you. It wouldn't have understood why everyone was so sad, it would have started to think it was the cause of sadness, and it would have pined away, thinking nobody wanted it, by the end of the month.

"But you said yes. I can't travel through time, so I had to make do. I shoved the other Chikorita's consciousness out of the way and put you in its place. The instincts? Feeling like a Pokémon? Those were the remnants of the unborn Chikorita's psyche."

I stared at him, agape.

"You wanted to know," he insisted hurriedly. "I just told you."

"So... By the act of being born I killed somebody?"

"That somebody was going to die soon anyway."

"Damnit, Mew, stop trying to justify everything!"

"You think I don't care!?" he screamed, and suddenly he was much larger. "I'm the deity of baby Pokémon. It hurt me to do that, but better one life than two or three!"

"Three?"

But Mew had turned away from me, and after a moment everything faded out and I was back in Karen's arms.

"Hey, buddy, it's too early for naps, you know," she said, smiling slightly. "We've got nothing...more or less...to do today, so I suppose I'll teach you how to walk. It'll be easy."

Easy. Maybe. Probably not, now that the Chikorita--I almost thought the _other _Chikorita--was entirely gone.

We were downstairs. I could only have been asleep for forty seconds, but it had felt like much longer. As she set me down on the carpeted floor, I stared up at her, thinking. _Better one life than three._

I had to do my best for her, because that was what the Chikorita should have done.


	4. The Funeral

A/N: Aha. You'd thought I'd given up on the story, didn't you? Well, you're wrong!

I _would_ have lost interest by now were it not for all your reviews... Thanks, all of you. I'd thank each of you individually, but not only would I be backlogged, but I've seen it done so often that I feel it would lose its touch.

A reponse to Totochu's question: OCs will appear later, once the "adventure" part of the story starts, which isn't too far off--perhaps the chapter after this. If I'm going to use it, odds are a scene involving it will have played out in my head and I already know how and when the characters will join. Patience. Look in the author's notes--the first time I use a character, I'll credit its origin to the reviewer who submitted it.

Onward!

**Chapter IV - The Funeral**

Mahogany Town is one of the coldest cities in Johto. Blackthorn, for all its being in a valley, manages to maintain quite a lot of heat even in the winter; this is, according to legend, because of the power of the Dragon-type is tied to the land. Snowpoint City in Sinnoh is the farthest-north inhabitad place in the country, with snow all year round. But Mahogany, one could say, is colder in its own way.

The summers were brief, the winters long and hard and snow-filled. Pryce Stark, the former Gym Leader, had admitted to being the fifth in a line of Ice-specialist Gym Leaders to grace the town--practically since the start of the Johto League--and my brother, it seemed, was the sixth. Cold is part of life there; humans can deal with cold. Most of the Pokémon found there--even the Gyarados who fill the Lake of Rage to the north--survive well in the wintertime. Chikorita do not.

I was glad it wasn't wintertime.

It was April, close to May and close to summertime, but the air was still dry and too cold for my taste, though I recalled being comfortable in temperatures far closer to freezing before...ugh.

The thought of my death put a foul taste in my mouth and a knot in my stomach. That was the entire reason we were here, anyway, wasn't it?

I kept myself close to Karen, grateful that I could borrow her warmth. The black bowtie that had been tied around my bud "necklace" did not collect enough of what heat there was to make a noticeable difference. I could walk now, and was walking, though I would have preferred it if she'd carried me, for all the indignity I'd have felt. Chikorita do not walk quickly, expecially compared to a human teenager of any height. I felt I was slowing her down. But now wasn't a good time to bother her--besides, if she needed me, and I knew for a certainty that within the next half hour she would, she could reach right down and pick me up in a good second and a half and be done with it.

I was taking four steps for every one step Karen took, but she was walking slowly so I didn't feel rushed. Aunt Kyra had offered to drive her to the funeral site, but she'd declined, saying she wanted to walk. As of yet she had abstained from her usualy stroke-the-leaf habit, but I knew it was only a matter of time.

We were on the western side of Mahogany, close to the Gym. The church, and by association, the graveyard we were headed to, were on the northeastern side, close to the start of the path to the Lake of Rage. Mahogany is not an exceptionally large town, though it is larger than Azalea; Karen, however, had been here before, and knew more or less where she was going. I figured that was for the best, as it would have appeared odd to recieve directions from a Chikorita who'd never been there before.

Karen was silent as we walked. The sound of my paws on the sidewalk was somewhere between a tap and a click, and aside from the sound of the wind rustling the leaves of the evergreen trees that pervaded Johto, there was hardly anything else to hear. It was a bleak, clear day, one that promised to only get so warm and then much colder that night. The sunlight was pale and cold, but the sky--when I'd gotten a chance to look at it, which is something Chikorita aren't really built to do--was a deep, beautiful blue. It was, aside from a rainy day, the most iconic funeral weather in the world.

_Tap, tap, tap_, went Karen's feet. _Clickclickclickclick,_ went mine.

Mew hadn't visited me at all in four days. I figured I deserved it, considering I'd pulled on his tail. I wasn't sure I wanted to talk to him either, as the idea of the unborn Chikorita kept haunting me. I hadn't slept well after our conversation, though God knew I'd worked my tail off (and I can say that honestly, since I have a tail) learning how to walk on four legs.

I honestly couldn't remember what day of the week it was, but I imagined it had to be Sunday. The streets were nigh-on deserted, and as we slowly meandered our way through the town only four cars passed us.

"Josh," said Karen after about fifteen minutes. We were almost at our destination, and I noticed ahead that a fair-sized crowd had gathered in the cemetary.

I looked up at her. '_Yeah?'_

"If... If I hold you too tightly or something, let me know. I..." Her face fell. "...I'll try not to hurt you, but..."

'_I understand._'

She stopped, sniffled, and bent down. I moved in front of her, and she picked me up and rotated me so I could see out, her arms wrapped comfortably beneath my forelegs. "I'm so sorry you're caught in the middle of this..."

Hah. Caught in the middle was right. But I only nodded and fanned my leaf gently. I heard her inhale, and though I could not longer feel her emotions I knew she was smiling weakly.

Funerals are boring. I'm sorry, but it's true. This would make the third funeral I'd been to in my li... in my existence, and it was as boring as the other two. The most exciting part--if one could use that word in relation to funerals--was when they brought the casket forward with me in it.

My stomach did a double barrel roll and Karen's habitual leaf-stroking picked up as the bearers moved away and I was treated to the sight of my dead body.

The first thing I noticed was something I'd known all along--formal clothes and I did not agree. I wasn't--and to this day am not--able to say exactly why, but the first thing I thought when I saw my body was _Ugh, that suit looks terrible on me._ They'd tried to slick back my hair, too, which was something I'd never done. I wasn't sure how many people noticed, but my right side--as it happened, the side facing Karen and I--looked unusually pale, and I figured that was extra touch-up to hide whatever may have been left of the post-mortem bruising I'd... my _body_ had undoubtedly incurred.

Then my brother stepped up to the podium, cleared his throat--the mikes that had been set up for the funeral protested with screeching feedback--looked out at the audience (which, surprisingly, was quite sizeable, especially considering I really didn't know half of them), and began to speak.

I won't transcribe any of it. Most of what he said--not _all _of it--but most of it would have filled your head with lies about me, listener. That's the thing about funeral speeches; the people who speak there are always biased, either because they're related to the deceased or they've been paid to edit out the bad parts. He mentioned my _gentle nature _(which was partially true, but not to the extent he praised it), my _willingness to aid others_ (this was, again, mostly true), my _affinity for Pokémon _(a baldfaced lie; Pokémon and I got along fine, but I had no mind for strategy nor for being a caretaker). He said he was shocked by the loss, angry at those who'd done it--but admitted he could forgive them if they gave up their boozing ways (when did this become an anti-alcohol seminar?).

I squirmed in Karen's lap. She didn't notice; her leaf-stroking did not waver in the slightest. Myst, who was lying on the ground beside Karen's chair, laughed a little.

'_What's so funny?_' I asked softly.

'_The boy lies._' Well, at least _someone_ could see the truth.

_Stroke, stroke, stroke._

_'How does it feel, Joshua?' _she asked, yawning.

I started, looking down at her. _Stroke, stroke..._ '_Wh...what?'_

'_Mmm,_' she said thoughtfully. '_That's what I thought._'

'_What?'_

'_You... are in that casket._' My jaw must have dropped, because she continued, '_It's quite easy to tell who you are. I wondered, when she named you Joshua... But it all makes sense, I suppose.'_

She stood up, and before I could formulate a reply, had turned and walked away. No one paid the Ninetales any mind: the audience's eyes were focused ahead again, and I wrenched my head back up in time to see the pastor, an elderly man with a bulbous nose and practically no hair, bow his head in prayer.

Religion in our world is interesting, because it is diverse. There are the mainstream monotheistic religions, which I am sure you know all about, listener. There are those who follow the teachings of the natural world, and those who worship the Legendaries--like Mew. The church--if you can't tell simply by the fact that I'm calling it that--was closer to the former. The prayer of the pastor, therefore, was one that he had doubtless learned by heart and repeated more times than he cared to remember.

"Now," he mumbled in closing. "Those who wish to see Joshua one last time may come forward."

We were third in line, behind my father and brother. I stared down at my forelegs, still draped over Karen's arms. Had I really meant that much to her...? I felt a drop of something touch my leaf; a moment later I flinched as it burned. Tears? Was she crying? I heard Karen take a shuddering breath, and then she was running, kicking off her shoes in disgust, as I bounced uncomfortably in her arms.

'_Karen! Hey, Karen, calm down...!'_

* * *

For the next part of the story I will designate Karen the narrator, even though I feature heavily into what she talks about. She can explain better to you how she felt than I ever could.

* * *

**Karen**

"_Chikorita! Chiko!_" Josh cried unhappily, but I kept running. I couldn't bear to look any more, couldn't bear to thnk about it. Joshua had been my cousin in blood, but he had been like a brother to me in soul, always out to protect me, and to open me up to the world that I had for so long been afraid of...

**Six Years Ago**

My tenth birthday was approaching. That was all I could think about. My tenth birthday, when everyone would expect me to become a Trainer.

I shuddered. There was the sound of a Pokémon pawing at the closed door to my bedroom, and a muffled cry of _"Nine!"_ I pulled myself into a little ball and willed the fox to go away.

"_Nine?_" Then, sounding almost hurt, "_...Ninetales._"

There was silence for a few moments more. I rocked back and forth slowly, trying to calm myself. I jumped about a foot, however, when there was a knock on my door.

"Hey," came Joshua's voice. "Can, uh, can I come in, Karen?" I didn't respond for a moment, and he continued, "You okay?"

"...Come in," I said quietly.

He did so, opening the door and slipping in almost silently. He was eleven, but looked older. I smiled, then recoiled when I noticed the Pichu hanging onto his pant leg.

"What is it, Karen? Oh," added Joshua, looking down. "Cirrus." He bent down and gently pried the mouse from his leg. She looked curiously at me, but I didn't hold her gaze. "Sorry, girl, you're gonna have to wait outside..."

"_Pichu?_"

"I know," said Joshua, smiling slightly. "But Karen's scared of you, so..." Gently he herded the Pichu to the door. Cirrus stood just beyond the door frame, her paw up to her mouth, her eyes still on me.

I would have told him I wasn't scared, but both he and I knew it. I tore my eyes away from his and looked out the window, toward Ilex Forest.

"You know," said Joshua quietly, "you don't have to become a Trainer."

"Mom wants me to," I whispered. "Dad wants me to help with the Day Care, but I don't want to do either..."

In the silence I held up my left hand and stared. Between the first and second knuckles, and lower, and in similar places on the palm side, bright spots of scarred flesh shone. The scar was old--I'd gotten it when I was three--but while the physical damage caused by the Umbreon's Bite had faded, the damage to my psyche was still fresh.

"You don't have to. I'm not gonna. I don't know what I want to do, but being a Trainer's never really been high on my list."

"You're not scared of... of _them._" I couldn't bring the word "Pokémon" past my lips.

"You won't give _them_ a chance."

"I _can't,_" I wailed, as I'd done to him what felt like thousands of times before. "They'll hurt me, I know they will."

"No, they won't," Joshua said calmly, as he'd done thousands of times before in response. "Cirrus, come here, girl."

The Pichu cautiously stepped into the room. Joshua picked her up, and she laughed a little, but as he held her out to me her smile faded, and I cringed.

"I _can't..._"

"_...Pichu?"_

"She's not hurting me, see?" I didn't move, and he sighed. "You can't get over poképhobia if you don't try, Karen."

"I _have_ tried." My eyes drifed back to the window. "I _have._ But I can't bring myself to it."

Joshua sighed again, and I heard him put Cirrus down. I felt him place a hand on my shoulder. "I think you can."

"Stop pushing me," I snapped finally. He recoiled, then dropped his gaze.

"You're right, Karen. I...I'm sorry." I stared at him for a moment more, then looked away again. The door opened, then closed again, and I heard Joshua going down the stairs slowly.

"...I'm sorry, too. I'm such a coward..."

**Joshua**

We were back at my house, where the Ashlockes were staying. Karen was huddled up on the couch; I was up on her shoulder, and she was still stroking my leaf as she concluded recounting the memory.

"...I know he meant well, but... I couldn't. I just knew they'd hurt me again." She paused. "But... I got over it, of course. I know you'd never hurt me, right?"

"_Chiko_._"_

She hugged me. "Thanks, Josh."

And there followed, for another fifteen minutes, silence. Then the Ashlockes, along with my father and brother, came home, and the day continued. Karen seemed to flow through it aimlessly, lost and confused. I stayed by her, but even then, unless she had something to do, she would stop moving and her eyes would gloss over. She was retreating into herself. I felt like doing the same--it was _my funeral_ I'd just come from--but I knew I had to give her what company I could. Hell, I needed all the company I could get.

In the days between my birth and my funeral (as odd as those words may sound in that particular conjunction) I had grown more comfortable around Myst. Not quite to the point where I had been as a human, but in an adoptive mother-son sort of role. It had been disturbing at first, but by the fourth day--the day we'd left to come to Mahogany--I'd quite gotten used to it. Despite the fact that she had, correctly, identified Josh, the Chikorita, as Joshua Card, the dead boy, she did not seem inclined to change this, even though I felt rather awkward about the whole thing. That evening, as the humans were sitting down to dinner, she approached, as she had done for the past few days.

'_Joshua._' This was the first time she'd used my full name, and I started and stared at her apprehensively. '_...You are unnerved.'_

_'Well, yeah,_' I admitted, probably sounding harsher than I meant to. '_The way you just...came out and said it. Did it ever occur to you that talking about death to a dead person can be kinda weird?'_

She looked away. Karen picked me up, making general baby sounds and attempting to entice me with a bottle. I had not grown overly fond of the stuff, but I wasn't due to start solid foods for another few weeks, I had little choice.

'_No,_' admitted Myst as I opened my mouth for the bottle. '_But... You must understand, Joshua, death is an abstract concept to my kind. Ninetales live for a thousand years, and even Vulpix have a longevity far surpassing what humans apparently expect._'

I mumbled an understanding.

'_We are called spiritual creatures, and it is true we share ties to the spiritual realm rivaled only by the Ghost-type. Nevertheless, despite our closeness to the realm of the dead... Death is something we do not understand, and do not have much cause to fear for a very, very long time.'_

She paused. The humans were chattering around us, but I wasn't really listening. Intentionally or not, Myst's eyes had begun to radiate a subtle glow that demaned and fixated my attention.

'_And... I have met other, ah, reborn humans in my life._'

I choked. With a cry of dismay, Karen removed the bottle from my mouth and began patting my back furiously.

'_Wh--what? There are...others?'_

"It's okay, Josh," said Karen soothingly, obviously thinking I was upset over choking. I was, but that was only a minor annoyance at the moment.

Most Pokémon cannot smile. It is a human habit, and in any case canine, feline, or in this case vulpine muzzles are not designed to do it. Nevertheless, the expression on Myst's face was leaning toward a smirk. '_Certainly you did not think you were the only one, Joshua! You are not that concieted.'_

"You better?" asked Karen. I nodded. "Still hungry?" I shook my head, and she let me down. I trotted toward Myst.

'_Of...of course I didn't really think I was the only one. I just wasn't sure..._'

Myst huffed, but it sounded a lot like laughter--another human habit that most Pokémon seemed quite able of picking up. I grumbled.

As was our habit, she crouched into a ready stance and growled at me. I blinked, then said, '_I don't feel like practicing tonight..._'

'_Despite the fact that Chikorita are native to the region humans call Johto, from my understanding, the bulk of your parentage was bred in Sinnoh. There is a strange property there in the air, or the earth, or some feature, that makes infantile Pokémon far weaker out of their eggs than anywhere else in the country. While you did not suffer the full effects of that, you are not as strong as a pure, Johto-bred Chikorita. I seek to rectify that before you and Karen begin traveling. Tackle me._'

'_I just ate.'_

_'This is different how? This is how we have practiced for the past three days in any case. You must be prepared to battle at any time. Tackle me.'_

'_Can't we at least do it outside?'_

Myst relaxed. '_...You are hesitant tonight.'_

_'I just went to my own funeral, Myst!'_ I snapped. '_I don't feel up to much of anything right now!'_

Myst blinked. '_You must be ready and willing to battle at any time._'

'_Don't you have any sympathy!?'_

_'Sympathy for Karen, yes. But it is not the way of Ninetales to pity the dead._'

I stared at her, my face scrunched in frustration.

'_Tackle me,_' she said again. I did, making the closest sound a Chikorita can produce to a snarl, but she swatted me out of the air as if I were nothing more than a loose piece of trash. '_I suppose this is a good time to tell you that attacking in anger is never a good idea. I thought that was an idea oft repeated in human culture? What do they call it...a cliché?'_

The momentum had caused me to roll as I touched the floor, and I was subject to several rotations of the room before I could right myself. I shook my head and ran at her again; as she raised a paw to swat at me, I leapt to the side and then flung myself forward again, into her side.

It was like running into a slightly soft, extremely hot brick wall. My head remained against her side as I lay there, dazed. After a moment, Myst said '_Oh,_' as if she were surprised, and stepped away, turning toward me again so I could look her in the eye without straining my neck. '_Well done, Joshua._'

I shivered.

'_...What?'_

_'Can you...like, not call me that? It's creepy.'_

_'It is your name.'_

After a moment, I nodded. '_I... I suppose, but...'_ As she gave no indication of understand, I blurted '_Do you not understand awkwardness at all?'_

_'No,_' she admitted bluntly. '_Ninetales do not, though Vulpix do. We...grow out of it._'

This seemed an oddly nonsensical statement from heretofore straightforward Myst, but I didn't question it. There was no further conversation, and Myst seemed content that I had finally landed a Tackle; as I was tired (being photosynthetic didn't help), I curled up on the couch in the living room as the humans finished dinner and was asleep faster than a frightened Buneary could run.

As I had expected, no Mew or any other Legendary. I wondered if he was still angry with me--for an immortal being, a few days couldn't have seemed more than a moment. Then I figured that I couldn't expect a significant dream every night.

Speaking of dreams... Well, no, I'll talk about that later, when it's important. I've probably said enough for now in any case. The following morning we were due to return to Azalea, and, assuming I was up to the National Stage Ability Standard for Trained Pokémon (commonly called "levels") 5, Karen would finally start her journey. A Trainer's journey is filled with variables and unknowns; you can be who you wanted to be, become who you wanted to become, catch the Pokémon you want to catch. That is, if you're the Trainer. If you're the Pokémon, there are even more unknowns: What's the Trainer going to be like? What other Pokémon will the Trainer catch? Will I do well enough?

The only thing I knew was that I wasn't going to be a whole lot of help in the Johto League. But I had to try anyway. For Karen's sake.

* * *

A/N: This would have been uploaded sooner, with a different ending, but when I put it on the site I couldn't get to it to edit it because of a bug. Then I decided to rewrite everything past Karen's flashback, which took a couple of days due to lack of motivation. But it's done now.

EDIT 09/09/09: The previous four chapters have had all blatent references to character submission removed, due to what appears to be a conflict with site rules. Character submission is, unfortunately, closed.


	5. The Outset

A/N: And now the journey finally begins! Well... At the end of the chapter, anyway.

I am amazed at the number of expressions we use that are animal related. It's quite fun to change them into Pokémon-based expressions.

* * *

**Chapter 5 - The Outset**

Walking to Mahogany Town is at least a three-week trip from Azalea Town, easily, but in the car this time can be reduced to about four hours (Highways. Gotta love 'em). I did not remember being carried to the car, nor the start of the journey back, but considering I did not wake up until the sun glared in through the back-seat window and into my eyes, I was not surprised. The trip itself was nothing special. The traffic was surprisingly light for a Monday morning, so despite the fact that the Ashlockes hadn't started 'till at least 7:00, we got back to Azalea around 9:30.

Karen set me down on the seat beside her as she got out, then picked me up. I put my forelegs across her shoulder as usual, and was still quite relaxed until she closed the door and started to walk away.

The instant I got a full view of the car--which was, more accurately, an SUV, deep-blue, and spotlessly clean--my head was filled with an irrational terror, and I struggled against Karen fruitlessly.

"What, Josh? What's wrong?"

This hadn't happened before, but maybe that was because I'd still been in shock myself. Now, every time I set my eyes on that vehicle--and indeed, any vehicle--my heart would race. I hid my face behind Karen's neck as she searched, pointlessly, for what had frightened me.

The Cards are not an exceptionally cowardly family, but the Quinns--Kyra's family, or more accurately _her _mother's family--seem to suffer from a variety of phobias. Kyra had not been an exception: for the longest time, she had been terribly frightened of Zubat and its evolutionary family. Karen, of course, had started out entirely poképhobic; while this was gone, another fear had taken its place, practically simultaneously. But I'm getting sidetracked. The point was that I'd developed motorphobia that only bothered me if I was _outside_ the car.

We had gone inside and up to Karen's room before I calmed down. Karen stroked my leaf gently as my breathing slowed.

"There... Whatever it is, it's gone, now. You'll be okay, I promise." She picked me up and hugged me, and I nuzzled her in return.

She then set me down on her bed, pulling out a small, Chikorita-sized stuffed Pokémon, which was in fact a Cyndaquil. I draped over it comfortably. Karen stroked my leaf for a moment more; then I felt her weight leave the bed, and heard her leave the room. Doubtless she had to make sure everything was prepared for the journey.

I started nervously. The _journey._

I wasn't sure _I _was ready, even though during the trip back, Karen had used Ren's Breeder-class Pokédex to declare me to be, in fact, level 6. I had never been much of a traveller; the farthest on foot I'd gone was from Mahogany to Azalea, to get the Ball my brother had wanted so badly.

Nervous now, I pushed myself off the Cyndaquil doll and stumbled around it as best I could on the soft bed.

'_You don't have to worry about a thing,_' I told it somewhat jealously. '_You're just a stuffed Pokémon, happy to be squished and hugged and loved on, never complaining._'

It offered no reply.

'_You aren't nervous about going on a journey. You don't have to go anywhere or do anything, you just have to be there._'

It remained smugly silent.

Frustrated, I pushed it off of the bed. It let out a soft _thump!_ as it hit the floor, followed by a _"Pika!"_ that sounded like _'Hey!' _

I started and looked off the bed. The Cyndaquil doll was moving, and for an instant I was wondering if I'd suddenly gone insane, before it rolled away to reveal a slightly ruffled and irritated Pikachu.

'_Oops?_' I said quietly.

'_Watch where you put stuff, huh?' _She leaped up onto the bed. _'I was coming to talk to you, and _bang! _All of a sudden there's a Cyndaquil on my head.'_

_'Sorry...'_

_'Nah. It's nothing,_' she said, relenting. '_You're nervous. Karen's going to go out on a journey, right? And you're going with her?_' A starry look filled her eyes and she looked away, toward the window. '_I've always wanted to... But I suppose I'd be nervous if I actually got the chance._' She blinked, clearing her eyes. '_I'm sorry... I haven't introduced myself yet. I'm Cirrus.'_

_Cirrus!? _I stared at her, surprised in spite of myself. This was the Pichu who'd hung desperately onto my pant leg all the time? And why hadn't I met her before?

During the conversation, not once had our eyes met. But when she told me her name, she stuck out a forepaw and smiled in my direction.

There was a terrible, wrenching feeling, and then I was _seeing_ something else.

_Noise--all was noise and confusion. People and Pokémon were screaming; she thought she heard a gunshot from far away, but she wasn't sure. She was running, but she wasn't sure where to--away from the gunshots. But before she could get away, there was a figure in front of her, wearing a Feraligatr mask. She gasped; then the figure raised a shotgun and fired._

I lurched backward and stumbled, falling onto my rear and breaking eye contact with Cirrus. The Pikachu had managed to remain standing, but she was breathless and her pupils had shrunk in panic.

'_Wha...What was that!?_' I cried. '_What did I just see!?'_

_'...You just saw someone get shot, right?_' asked Cirrus quietly, crouching onto her forepaws and lowering her ears flat against her head, still nervous.

'_Yeah... How did you...?'_

_'And I just saw someone get hit by a bright red car. Sound familiar?'_

I stared at her. '_How did you know?'_

_'You were a human once,_' she stated, ignoring my question. Stunned, I nodded. '_You've been reborn, just like me...'_ She closed her eyes and stood up on her rear paws again. '_When reborns lock eyes, they see how the other died...'_

_'...Sounds rather macabre.'_

_'It helps you know who you can talk to, at least._' She paused. '_So what was your name?' _When I didn't respond, thoroughly baffled, she reiterated '_Your human name. What was it?'_

_'Oh! Uh... Jo...'_ I trailed off, uncertain whether to tell her who I was. I decided to be reckless. '_Joshua.'_

_'Mine was Sarah...' _She stared thoughtfully through me for a moment, then she blinked twice and focused her eyes on me again. I flinched, but did not see the gruesome scene again. '_Joshua!? The guy who just died? The...'_ She walked forward, seeming dazed, and stared intently into my eyes. '_I used to grab onto you and let you carry me around the house.'_

_'Y-yeah... Why was that?'_

_'Uh...'_ Cirrus--Sarah?--chuckled nervously. '_Honestly? It was a combination of confusion and... Well, I liked your smell._' Pikachu, because of their static pouches, seem to be blushing constantly; however, it was clear despite this that Cirrus was embarrassed. '_I mean, I...Well, Chikorita smell good too, but..._' She inhaled as if to say something more, but it turned into a sigh.

'_Uh. Right._'

After a moment, Cirrus muttered, _'I'm still jealous, though.'_

_'Hah? Why?'_

_''Cause... I never got to go on a journey. I died when I was twelve, but because of, um, family problems, I couldn't become a Trainer before then. And even after all the time here... I still haven't gone on a journey.'_

I laughed. She looked insulted, but I explained, '_Funny. You want to go on a journey, but Karen probably won't take you--if I know anything about her she'll want to catch her own Pokémon--while she's taking me, and I don't really want to go.'_

_'Yeah,' _said Cirrus, smiling. '_I heard when you dropped the Cyndaquil on me.'_ After a moment, the smile faded, and the reborn was left with a serious, almost depressed look on her face. She dropped softly off of the bed and padded toward the door.

'_By the way,'_ said she, turning around at the door frame. '_Whenever you're around... If you need to talk about, you know...'_

_'I'll find you,_' I promised. She smiled again, a little weakly, and left the room. Though she tried to hide it, an instant before she passed out of my view her expression became morose.

A few minutes later, Karen returned, a bright look on her face. Her outfit had also changed; she had inherited her father's love for the color teal, and so wore a jacket that color over a black blouse, along with quite plain blue jeans. Her hair had been pulled back into a Ponyta-tail, and I noticed an instant later a pink Pokétch (which by this point have nearly entirely replaced PokéGear) on her wrist. In her hand was a Platinum-standard Pokédex, in standard red, and around her belt--essential gear for a Trainer, no?--was a single PokéBall.

When I noticed the last, it fixed my attention, because it had to be empty, and it had to be meant for me.

"Hey, Josh, are you... Oh, you're wondering what this is?" She pulled the PokéBall off and held it up. "This is a PokéBall. When I do this," and here she pressed the central button, enlarging the Ball, "I can put you inside it when you're tired."

I wasn't sure what that felt like, and I honestly didn't want to find out. I backed away, shaking my head.

"Huh? It won't hurt," she promised. And how would she know that!? "I'll let you right back out, I promise." Still I shook my head. "Josh, please? If I do this no one will be able to steal you, even if I keep you outside the Ball the whole time."

I found it interesting that she would bring up theft, which was a topic that most Pokémon a week old would not understand. Perhaps, in lieu of Joshua, she had attached herself emotionally to Josh?

I was still apprehensive about the whole thing, but I couldn't say no to her pleading look. I relented, nodding, and she tapped my head softly with the ball. There was a moment of extreme discomfort as I was converted into energy, atom by atom, and then...

Blankness. A feeling of extreme exhaustion, an urge to sleep, but above all of that a sense of blankness, and the inability to think. Everything was grey and flat, and I couldn't feel my limbs.

Another wrenching feeling as I was recomposed, atom by atom, and then I shook my head to clear it.

"There, that's it. I'll only use it if I have to, alright? I know some Pokémon just don't like it." She was, I noticed for the first time, wearing a backpack, of reasonable size, black in color. "You can get on here if you want," she said, gesturing toward her shoulder.

"_Chiko."_

"Okay, then. Here." She held out an arm, and I--carefully--scampered across it and around onto her shoulder, supporting my back legs on her bag. As I repositioned myself to a more comfortable position, she turned her head and looked at me. "There. That comfortable?" I nodded, and she smiled. "I guess...we're ready to go, then."

The beginning of a Trainer's journey is an important event, though often small in scale. It had been for my brother, it had been for my friend Rodney, it probably had been for the Johto Champion, whose name I honestly can't remember. So it was for Karen. She came slowly down the stairs, with me on her shoulder, to see Ren and Karen, along with Myst and all seven of the 'chus (Cirrus and Isaac among them).

Ren smiled. "I'm...proud of you, Karen. Not five years ago you were claiming you'd never be a Trainer, but... here you are, with a Pokémon you raised from an egg."

"Thanks to Myst," added Karen slowly. "And... Joshua."

"I think you've got it in you to do better than any of us," said Kyra, apparently forgetting the fact that Ren had certainly been capable of progressing to the Johto League if he'd actually wanted to, and that Kyra herself had simply given up on ever being a good Trainer.

'_I wish you the best,_' stated Myst, even though Karen couldn't understand her.

There was a moment where Karen seemed to waver on her feet, and I wondered if she was alright. Then she said, "Thanks... Dad, Mom, Myst..."

'_Don't forget about us!'_said one of the Pichu, bouncing excitedly. '_Good luck, Karen!'_

"And you guys," said Karen thickly. Was she crying again? After a moment, she seemed to steel herself, and walked toward her father and mother; a group hug ensued, forcing me to the floor. I looked around at the other Pokémon present. Myst seemed detached, her eyes on the humans, as were all of the 'chus except for Cirrus, who was staring at me with smoldering eyes. When she noticed me looking, she gasped, and looked away.

I clicked over, but before I could say anything she muttered, '_Don't say anything.'_

I stared at her, obliging.

'_If you do, I'll only end up feeling worse.'_

The other 'chus were staring at one or the other of us, confused looks on their faces. Myst's head had not turned, but I could feel her eyes focusing on us.

Not only had she asked me not to speak, I couldn't think of anything worth saying.

'_...Have a good time, Josh,_' Cirrus finished flatly, her eyes stormy again. Karen came over and picked me up, and I was left looking over her shoulder at Cirrus as she left the house. I noticed after a moment that Myst was following. After a brief struggle to tell Karen I wanted to be let down, I fell behind and talked to the fox.

'_I am accompanying you to the edge of town, and no farther._' That was quite a distance, as I noticed we were heading away from Ilex Forest, which meant that we were, in fact, heading for Violet City first.

'_Why?_'

'_Raymond-sama asked me to._'

'_Why do you call him that?' _I asked, honestly curious in spite of the nerves that had suddenly reclaimed their place in my head. '_Just another Ninetales thing?'_

She seemed offended that I had dubbed her habits such, and did not answer the question. Karen was bouncing ahead of us, quite happy, and I was nearly running to keep up with Myst's sedate walk (which let her keep up with my cousin...my _Trainer,_ I guess, with ease).

Several minutes into this, Karen began talking, I assume about what she planned to do and how she planned to do it. I mostly tuned her out. For some reason, I couldn't get Cirrus's not-quite angry muzzle out of my mind.

'_Myst,_' I said finally. The Ninetales turned her head toward me. '_How would you have handled Cir... I mean, uh, Sarah?'_

_'She told you, then._' There was no surprise in her voice. '_I know her troubles... She has told me all about herself. It is only natural she would be jealous that you, a newborn, and more than that, a human who had never wanted adventure, got what she, a child--but far older in Pokémon age--was never able to.' _She padded along in silence for a few moments. '_I do not think I would have done it any differently than you, Joshua. There are times where the best thing one can do is to say nothing.'_

I looked down, still troubled.

'_Do not let it concern you._' I glanced up at Myst again, but she was looking ahead, at Karen. '_Your Trainer will need your support. She may seem strong now, but she is using this to cover her grief.'_

'_How old are you?_' I asked suddenly, my curiosity getting the best of me.

'_...Twenty five, or as near as makes no difference, as the humans count years. In Ninetales' eyes, I am no more than an infant. Why are you asking?'_

'_Just... You seem so much older. If you're already that...mature,_' I explained, trying to find better words and failing, '_I'd like to see a millennium-old Ninetales.'_

_'I do not believe there is one. At least, one that is public knowledge._' She stopped suddenly. I had been drifting to my right, behind her, and, caught off guard as I was, walked onto the tip of her tail, scraping the ground, just as she tried to lift it in the waving motion that all Ninetales share. Myst gasped, and I leapt off, cringing.

'_S-sorry!'_

"Josh? What's wrong?" I cracked open an eye. Karen had turned and was looking at me. I glanced around and realized that we had to be at the edge of town. True to her word, Myst had not taken a step beyond the city limits.

'_Joshua... Do not do that again,_' said Myst shortly.

'_I-it was an accident, I swear!'_

_'All the same. Do not presume to touch my tail--_any_ of my tails--without my consent._' There was a steeliness in her gaze that I hadn't seen since the night of my rebirth.

"Josh?"

'_Go,_' said Myst imperatively. Helplessly I obeyed her command, staring back at her until she turned and left, and we rounded a corner and found ourselves facing the entrance to the Union area.

* * *

**Myst**

Ninetales take pride in their tails. I was no exception; I did not, and would never, allow anyone to touch my tail without my consent. We are called a vengeful species, and perhaps that is true; but every race has its sins.

'_I suppose you think you're clever,_' I said to apparently no one as I wandered back through town.

_/Oh? Why do you say that?/ _The telepathic voice had a bright, cheerful quality to it, as if the owner was constantly an inch from laughter.

'_You say he pulled on your tail. Now he has pulled on mine.'_

_/I didn't arrange that!/ _exclaimed the other, appearing in my mind's eye. The Mew had a false-angry look on his face. _/...Though, hahah, it __**was**_ _kinda funny/ _

I said nothing, my outer eyes scrutinizing the path back to Raymond's house while my inner eyes bored into the Mew's sapphire ones.

_/What?/_

_'...You have changed. You used to be more serious.'_

_/What good is a serious Mew?/ _The feline did a loop. _/Gotta be a little crazy if you want to do the job, anyway/_

_'...I prefer you the way you used to be._'

At this, the Mew stopped his pirouetting and looked at me, his eyes serious. _/...You do?/_

_'But you can't change what you are, I suppose.'_

The Mew looked troubled, holding his front paws together rather like a human shuffling his or her thumbs.

_'But that doesn't matter at the moment. Do one thing, for as long as you hold sway over Joshua...'_

_/Yeah?/_

_'Keep him safe. And help him keep Karen safe.' _That was actually two things, I supposed, but the Mew didn't seem to care.

_/Care about them, do you?/ _

'_I saved Karen's life, and in turn she saved mine. Joshua... He has a greater purpose, does he not?'_

_/Maaaybe/_ said the Mew evasively. _/You know I can't tell you stuff like that/_ There was silence for a moment. _/But... Yeah. I'll do it, just 'cause I care about you/_

_'Thank you,'_ I said sincerely. The Mew was there for another moment, and then he was gone, and I focused my outer eyes and found myself looking at another Pokémon.

There was a moment where neither of us moved. Then the other said, '_Don't try to stop me.'_

I said, '_As you wish,_' and walked past the other. I felt the Pokémon looking after me for a moment, probably wondering if it could really have been that easy. I did not convince it otherwise.

And so I continued on, home, back to Raymond. His daughter was gone; doubtless he would need a comfort different than what Kyra could give him.

As I walked back into the yard, I paused for a moment, stared in the direction Karen and Joshua had taken, and, silently, wished them luck. Then I went inside.

* * *

I am going to upload this and then, probably, not update for awhile. I know my updates, such as they have been, are sporadic, but I won't be able to update at all next week, to my knowledge. So enjoy this, and I'll get back to writing as soon as I can.

Note that the use of the phrase "Union area" (as opposed to Union Cave) is intentional and will be addressed next chapter.

Something that I don't believe I addressed in the introduction: When _/telepathic speech/_ends, minor punctuation marks (that is, periods and commas) are omitted, because it looks odd to me if I don't. Other punctuation (question marks, exclamation points, and, naturally, the forwardslashes that denote telepathy) will remain.

An OC next chapter, by the way; at least the way I have it planned now. Stay tuned. As it were.

Until next time.

...By the way. Does anyone else think the image of a Chikorita pushing a Cyndaquil doll off of a bed and onto a Pikachu is irrationally cute?


	6. The Ill and the Good

A/N: As I promised, an OC in the chapter. Due credit for the character's origin will be given at the end of the chapter, to avoid spoiling the surprise.

I realize that most of the previous chapters have been short; I realize this, and I am sorry. Most of you expect far longer chapters. I will do my best--but make no promises--to make each chapter at least four-thousand words, if not five-thousand. It's a bold attempt for me, but hey, you don't get anywhere if you don't try.

Pokémon and all related trademarks and copyrights belong to Nintendo, GameFreak, and anyone else that may hold stock in a series about kids and really weird--but really cool--animals. Joshua Card, Karen Ashlockes, and all characters of my origin, naturally, belong to me; the original character... Well, I'll tell you later.

By the way, sorry for the delay in uploading this chapter. I had to work around a plot hole; eventually I just skipped it, and will deal with it at a later time. Pacing feels better that way, I think.

It's my spring break, so provided I have enough free time I will upload at least another chapter this week; hopefully writer's block won't plague me this time.

Onward!

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**Chapter VI – The Ill and the Good**

For the longest time--in fact, up until a few years before Uncle Ren had been born--the only thing in between Azalea Town and Violet City, barring the Routes, was Union Cave, which was essentially a somewhat tall, thin (as mountains go) mountain with a ridiculously short cave between the entrances. It had been a famous hangout for Hikers and less-than-successful, often-vengeful Firebreathers.

That had changed when Ren was four, and I hadn't been thought of yet. Over in the Hoenn region, two criminal teams had been fighting each other for decades and had finally awakened not one, but _both _of the Shaping Pokémon that found rest in that region, Kyogre and Groudon. The resulting presence of such elemental mammoths had screwed with the entire planet's weather system; while it is true that Hoenn was hit hardest, insane, Skitties-and-Growlithes rainstorms replaced with droughts that reportedly made significant portions of several lakes evaporate, the rest of the country had not escaped unscathed.

Johto is not in the right _place_ to get a drought, Groudon's abilities aside. It is farther north of the equator than Hoenn, and, as it happened, it was very early winter in Johto at the time. The rain, not cold enough to completely crystallize, had become sleet; several windows in Azalea Town were broken, and the aging Charcoal-maker's Farfetch'd's wings were broken when it attempted to fly off.

I suppose I can't tell you, for certain, if any of this is true, since even my uncle was a young boy then. But this is what I heard: this sleet, and eventually the _hail_, became the size of car tires--but not over Azalea Town. For whatever reason, the hail over Union Cave had become gargantuan and incredibly destructive, even against the stone of the mountain. There was a cave-in at the south entrance, killing three people immediately and five all told, and injuring seven more. The President of the time immediately declared that an alternate route be created--even though both Groudon and Kyogre, and eventually even Rayquaza the Sky-Dragon had been soothed and put back to rest by the then-not-quite-Champion Brendan Maple, and thus the likelihood of such cataclysmic weather patterns occurring in the lifetimes of several dozen generations reduced. A highway had been built around the edge of the mountain, and the entire west side had been ground down as much as possible to a slight bump in the landscape. Sod had been laid down; the Johto Pine forest had spread, and by my time quite practically runs to the edge of Mt. Union, though of course the trees are still relatively young.

Johto Pine are hardy trees, however, and they grow fast. They did not naturally clump much here, though almost everywhere else in the region they grew so closely that you just couldn't fit between them, no matter how thin you were. The sunlight still shone through, and, as Karen kept to the sunlight for the most part, I was happy. The sunlight actually controlled my moods: I'd found that out quite fast, and even now I find it to be a little unnerving, and more than a little irritating. Karen still had a bounce in her step, but she'd been keeping it up for so long that it felt quite relaxing to me as I leaned on her shoulder.

The Ashlockes are a more traditional family than can be found most often today. Truth be told, with the exception of Hoenn's Petalburg Gym, there were no rules in any of the regions that said you _had_ to do the Gyms in any particular order, though it was true that they became harder the farther from the native Professor's town. However, like Ren before her, Karen had decided to go _in order_, and attempt Violet City's Flying-type Gym first.

My stomach twisted again, and I made a sound like a soft gasp, but Karen didn't seem to notice. I'd thought about Falkner's Gym before, but now it seemed far closer. Falkner trained birds. I was a Grass-type; not only that, but Falkner kept his birds around level 10, and I was woefully short of that. My head tilted back and I was treated to a dizzying view of the sky above us, through the branches of the trees. Was it just me, or was the sky _moving_? I squinted--Chikorita eyesight, I noticed, was about on par with human--and finally deciphered a flock of...

I moaned and dropped off of Karen's shoulder, suddenly feeling violently sick, and having another moment where all the events of the past few days came rushing back at once. I was vaguely aware of hitting the ground, of Karen gasping and dropping to her knees in front of me, crooning. The world swam, and went dark.

...

"Not scared of birds, are you?" asked Mew's voice.

I didn't respond; I was too busy catching my breath and trying to focus in the dark void.

"I mean, I know you're a Grass-type and all, but... Surely you can't have developed a phobia that fast?"

I whirled around, trying to find him, but the catlike Legendary was nowhere to be seen. "Don't talk to me about phobias, Mew!" I snapped after a moment.

"Oh... You've already got one, huh? I mean, of cars." Even in this dream void, the idea made me feel terrified, and I curled my unreal human image into a small ball.

"D-don't." I took a shuddering breath.

"You injured me. I'm insulting you." Mew appeared in front of me, tail hanging down and an impassive, almost angry look on his face. "I'm normally not much for the whole 'eye for an eye, tail for a tail,' thing, but, you know... It was _my _tail." Said tail twitched, and my head was forced up. I found myself staring into his sapphire eyes that now seemed to be depthless dark pools of freezing water.

"I… I'm sorry, alright?"

The tail twitched again, and the nauseating feeling returned.

"I was confused, I was angry, I'm sorry!"

Mew's face remained horribly unexpressive. "If it weren't for her, I'd do worse to you than make you sick." His tail reached around and pushed me down, with an effortless flick, to whatever functioned as the ground here. "She asked me to keep you as safe as I could… I'll do that. But not until you've made up for what you did to me."

"It was just your tail!" I gasped, backing away. "God, with the way you're reacting you'd think you were a Ninetales."

"It was _my _tail," said Mew again, then started, his eyes snapping open. He looked off to one side, a confused expression on his face; then there was a loud noise and an imperative voice filled my mind.

_**/Now, Progenitor!/**_

Mew scowled, spared one more glance at me, then vanished. I sank back into the dark void of unconsciousness…

'_Hey…'_

I tried to move and found myself immobilized.

'_Wake up, please. I've got something that will help you.'_

I realized dully that it was a Pokémon speaking. I tried to move again and felt myself twitch.

'_Oh!' _The voice was female, and… I recalled slowly the sounds I'd heard before, but couldn't tell what she was. With a great effort, I opened my eyes, and found myself face-to-face… well, technically, muzzle-to-muzzle with a big, brown thing.

She backed off. My eyes refocused, and I spotted a white ring on her chest, short, stubby forepaws (which were holding some sort of berry), and a face that seemed to be part of the body. After a moment I spied a ringed tail behind her, and realization finally dawned.

'_You're a Sentret,_' I said stupidly.

'_Yes, and you're a Chikorita,_' she countered, mouth open in a more natural Pokémon "smile."

'_Karen…' _I shook my head. '_Where's Karen?'_

'_Who?'_

'_Ah… The human… the girl…'_

'_Oh._' The Sentret pointed with her tail. '_She went that way, probably looking for a berry to help settle your stomach. You're a newborn, aren't you?'_

I started, at first thinking she'd said "reborn," but then relaxed with a weary nod. Why had Karen left me alone? Certainly she wasn't that stupid… But maybe she'd been so worried she'd forgotten common sense. She had inherited that from her mother.

'_I don't think she'll find one, since they only grow in the other direction.'_ She waddled—awkwardly, on her rear paws—forward and proffered the berry. '_Here. It'll help.'_

'_I'm… too young. Still can't eat solid food.' _This was, unfortunately, true. If I recalled correctly, Chikorita couldn't eat solid food—what solid food they ate, at any rate—until they were at least two or three weeks old. I was still short of that, too.

'_Oh,_' said the Sentret, her ears falling slightly. '_Umm… Hold on a moment.' _She turned away; there was the sound of slicing, and she turned back around, the berry in much smaller chunks. '_Would, um, that help?'_

'_Better than nothing._' I tried to stand so she didn't have to bend down, but she did so anyway as I failed. The berry was still tough and had a bland, almost bitter taste; but immediately as I swallowed it I began to feel better. _Take that, Mew. _

'_Th…thanks,' _I said, looking nervously around for Karen.

'_She didn't go far. She'll be back soon.' _With another gentle mouth-open smile, the Sentret turned, got down on all fours—where she was obviously more comfortable—and began to walk away.

'_Hey,'_ I called after her, finally managing to get to my feet. '_What's your name, by the way?'_

'_Huh?' _She seemed surprised, turning back to look at me. I noticed for the first time that she had green eyes—deep, forest green. '_W-well, uh…'_

"Josh!" came Karen's voice worriedly. The Sentret gave a shout and darted off. I took a step after her, but she was gone; I knew I couldn't catch her if I tried. "Oh, Josh, you're awake!" With no warning, she picked me up and turned me around. Such sudden motion was enough to make me feel slightly sick again, and I think my eyes crossed. "Oh, I was worried!" Karen cried, pressing me to her shoulder.

'_I'm better now,_' I insisted weakly, patting her shoulder. '_…Just… a little upset stomach.'_

"I know you aren't supposed to have solid foods for awhile yet. I was looking for a berry to help your stomach settle, but I couldn't find any, and I was coming back to find you so I could take you back to Azalea's Pokémon Center, but you were better." She held me at arms' length again. "You _are _better, right?"

"_Chiko…Chikorita._" Mostly. I think so.

I was back on her shoulder again. "Maybe this is a bad idea."

'_No!'_ I insisted fervently. '_You've been waiting for this for months, don't stop now because some stupid cat wants his revenge.'_

"You don't want me to stop…?" _God,_ could humans really not understand me? This was going to take a lot of getting used to.

'_No!'_

She took a deep breath, said "Yes… You're right. I've just started, I can't run back home yet…"

'_That's it, Karen!'_

And so it continued: she would slowly continue onward beside Mt. Union, obviously worried and upset; I would occasionally mutter compliments, encouragements, even though I could have cursed her out and she would have taken it for a good thing if I'd said it in the right tone. By the time the sun was setting, Mt. Union was behind us, though not by much; Karen still looked nervous, and I was running short of things to say… And the Sentret's berry was no longer preventing my sickness.

Violet City was still another half a day away, and with it the closest Pokémon Center. Karen hadn't found any Pecha Berries (as I would find out later that that was the type of berry I'd been given), and so practically insisted I stay inside my PokéBall so whatever I had didn't get worse. I rejected this, and even had to dodge the beam a few times (Myst's training was really paying off!) before she relented.

I wasn't sure, later, that it was a good idea. It had started as an upset stomach, but now I was dizzy and disoriented. Mew was really pushing the envelope… Whatever it was couldn't be lethal, or he'd break the promise to whoever "she" was, but he was certainly going out of his way to make me feel like crap.

'_Hey!'_

My eyes opened, but in the dark I could see almost nothing; not to mention I wasn't terribly motivated, being both photosynthetic and ill. Out of the darkness around us came a strange oblong shape. I tried to force myself up, but once again found myself too weak to move.

'_Don't worry!' _The shape came closer and revealed itself to be the green-eyed Sentret. '_I'm here to help again.'_

'…_Why?' _I breathed. Karen was only a few feet behind me—I'd removed myself from her grip to do relieve myself in the forest a little ways away, but had apparently fallen asleep on the way back.

'_Because you're a baby,_' she said matter-of-factly. I suppressed a surge of annoyance. '_I like taking care of babies.'_ She dropped several Pecha Berries at her footpaws and began to tear them up in earnest.

'_Aren't… you a little far from your den?'_

'_What?'_ She looked up. '_Oh. No, because I don't really have one. I like to travel.'_

…Nothing like any Sentret I'd ever heard of. She was intriguing. '_Do you travel with anybody?'_

'_No,'_ she said, still working on the berries. '_I don't ever stay in one spot long enough to make friends or find a mate. That's just the way my life is, you know?'_

Travel… And she was obviously a pretty upbeat Pokémon. Maybe she'd be able to help me boost Karen's confidence. '_How about traveling with us, then?'_

She paused, her eyes—which in the darkness seemed brown like any normal Sentret's—glittering at me in fear. '_N-no… I don't really like humans. Besides, I've always traveled by myself…'_

'_How far have you gotten?'_

'_I started by the big lake,'_ she said, just a little haughtily. '_But you don't even know where that is.'_

'_Of course I…' _I started, then stopped. '_Well… Uh, I've, ah, been near it, I think, but I don't really know…'_

'_I like traveling. I like just…going around places, you know?' _She had a faraway look in her eyes, and perhaps it was that—the fact that she wasn't really paying attention—that kept her from darting away immediately as Karen mumbled my name.

I felt her reaching around behind me—trying to find me—and after a moment, as this failed, I heard her wake up. "Josh? Oh…"

The Sentret was frozen, incredibly tense. Slowly I turned myself to look back at Karen, but she was struggling to look past me.

"Is that a…?"

'_I should go,'_ said the Sentret quickly, turning to leave.

"Wait! Don't…"

'_She won't hurt you or anything,_' I insisted quickly.

I could see the Sentret was deep in thought; her gaze switched from me, to Karen, to the trees, and back to me. She seemed unable to decide.

'_All this time I've been by myself… Going where I want, doing what I want to do…'_ Her gaze was on me. '_I've been helping little Pokémon like you…'_ She paused. '_I… I don't trust humans. It's part of what I am.'_ She began to walk past me.

'_But…'_ I was at a loss. I knew—somehow, I just _knew_ that Karen had to get this Pokémon into her party. But how was I to convince the Pokémon—a Sentret, no less, which as a rule are extremely mistrusting of humans—that joining up with Karen was a good idea?

'_Hey.'_

She stopped, flinching at the sudden sound of my voice.

'_You say you like exploring… That's a lot like going to new frontiers, isn't it?'_ It was time to see if this particular piece of human wordplay translated well into Pokémon. '_How about exploring the frontier of humanity?'_

'_What?'_ She turned back to me, a puzzled expression on her face.

'_It'd be an adventure. And… Well, I don't know if you can trust me, but I know Karen—she isn't dangerous, she isn't stupid.'_

'_Well…'_

'_You like baby Pokémon, right? Like…like me? I mean, honestly, I could use all the help I can get… I've had practice, but it's not nearly enough.'_

'_I'm not much of a fighter,_' she insisted.

All this while, Karen had been getting out of her sleeping bag slowly and silently. She inched toward the Sentret and managed to put a finger to her side before the Sentret started and jumped away, standing on her tail and growling. Karen flinched, and I saw the phobia come boiling up into her eyes. Seeing this, the Sentret slowly lowered herself, staring intently at the human.

'_She's… not much more than a child herself, is she?'_

'_I wouldn't say that, but she, um… She scares easily.'_

'_She's… scared of me?_' The Sentret stared down at her paws. '_I've… never scared anyone. Never intentionally, anyway. I… F-forgive me,_' she said quietly. She leaned forward onto the ground, her tail stretched out straight behind her, and did not move.

This was, I learned later, a sign of submission in Sentret: when one behaved like this, it was saying that it was unworthy to be a herd sentry—the lowest-ranked sentries in a colony, a position that practically any Sentret could fill (1).

Neither the Sentret nor Karen moved for a moment. I inched toward Karen, who kept her eyes locked on me. She was still afraid. I, lacking any better way to tell her it was okay, nuzzled her knee.

Very slowly, hand shaking, my cousin reached out and touched the Sentret; the Pokémon did not move, and Karen, growing a little bolder, began to scratch her between the ears. I smiled; above me, Karen did the same, and the Sentret, finally, sighed and leaned into Karen's hand.

'_See?_' I said to both of them, surprised at how easily I was falling into the role of mediator. '_It's not so bad.'_

But Karen, who heretofore had been moving quite slowly, suddenly brought out a PokéBall and tried to bring it down upon the Sentret's head (gently); but, naturally, the Pokémon had better reflexes and instincts than the human and was not only not in the same spot when the PokéBall came down, she was nowhere to be seen.

Karen and I stared at the space the Scout Pokémon had occupied, both somewhat dumbfounded.

'_Well done!_' I snapped after realizing what happened. Karen looked downcast.

"That was stupid."

'_Yes, it was!' _But later I regretted my temper; she had had very little experience with wild Pokémon, as they are a rare sight in the Day Care. I still would have expected her to know that wild Pokémon—especially species that are by nature distrustful of humans—did not simply start to trust humans.

We went back to sleep, but I knew that the Sentret was still around; I could feel her watching me.

* * *

And she was there when I awoke in the morning, half hidden behind one of the thicker trees. I stared at her, and she at me; Karen had not moved, and I was unsure whether she was even awake or not.

'_I told you they were dangerous,'_ said the Sentret triumphantly. '_I've seen those weird metal berries before, how they make Pokémon disappear. I don't want that. I've decided it's not worth it to go with you.'_

At this point I simply got mad; Sentret or not, why wouldn't she give Karen a chance!? And without even waiting for my Trainer to wake up and issue a command, I sprang to my feet and sprinted into a Tackle. The Sentret was taken by surprise and tumbled away as I made contact with her. I stumbled forward, trying to stay on my feet; I should have been paying more attention to the other Pokémon, as she sprung off of a tree and knocked me back into Karen's camp before I could react.

Quick Attack.

I picked myself up and managed to jump off to the side before she could hit me again; I flung myself after her, but she scampered up a tree, and I found myself attempting to tackle said tree.

The tree won.

I reeled, stars blocking my vision. I shook my head; there was a draft upon my leaf, an unnatural wind, and I managed to leap to the side again before the Sentret _thump!_ed hard into the ground beside me.

I Tackled again, but she had set her weight down. Sentret are not terribly heavy—that is to say, relative to a human. Chikorita, in truth, are heavier (2) than they—but the Sentret, with their colossal tails, have the advantage in sheer leverage. Her stubby left arm reached back, and I saw claws that had not been there a moment before. I flinched. She attacked.

"Huh!?"

I staggered, welts rising on my face already from the Sentret's Scratch.

"Josh!?" Karen—she was awake? "Josh, use Razor Leaf!"

I opened one eye and saw the Sentret leaning back, coiling her tail to launch into a Quick Attack; in desperation I swung my head around the way I'd always seen Chikorita use Razor Leaf, and I felt—for one infinite, terrible instant—absolute pain as my leaf was split into three. One regrew instantly—another eternity of pain—and the other two, edges as sharp as throwing stars, flew forward and slashed across the Sentret's stomach.

It was her turn to reel, stubby arms scrabbling across the O on her stomach.

"Now, Josh! Tackle!"

I did as Karen bid and flung myself one last time at the Sentret. She flew tail-over-ears, landed on her stomach, and did not move again.

I felt myself go limp, and my legs spread out around me as I collapsed. My first real battle… And I'd won!

The Sentret disappeared in a flash of red light, and for an instant, as the Ball vibrated and finally went still, returning to Karen's hand, I pitied her. She hadn't really wanted this; I wondered if she would resent me for it.

"I did it…" Karen breathed. "I… caught a Pokémon." And then she did something that caught me by surprise: something I'd never ever seen a Trainer do after he or she catches a Pokémon.

Karen picked me up, looked me square in the eye, and said "But you did all the work. Thank you, Josh." And she hugged me, laughing. I laughed with her, and eventually both of us simply began to laugh uncontrollably. Karen dropped to the ground, said "I did it…" one more time, and brought out the PokéBall.

The Sentret rematerialized. Her eyes were foggy, but cleared after a moment; she noticed us and started, tensed.

'_It's over,_' I told her. '_And I'm sorry…'_

She looked at me carefully for a moment, then at Karen. Then she said '_…Maybe I can make the best of it._' And suddenly she was smiling. '_You're right. It's another adventure!'_

'_With a friend, I hope…?' _I asked, stepping toward her.

'_Um… Sure!'_ she said happily, then added '_just so long as you don't Razor Leaf me again.'_

I smiled.

"How about Rina?" said Karen after a moment. The Sentret looked up at her. "For a name. Do you like Rina?"

She thought on this. Then, '_Sure! It's better than my name, anyway…'_

'_What _is _your name, by the way? You never told me. Ah, mine's Josh, by the way.'_

She turned toward me, eyes glittering mischievously. '_My name? It's Rina.'_

In other words she wouldn't tell me. Oh well; if it made her happy…

After a moment, Rina collapsed to the ground again, still exhausted from the battle. Karen returned her to her Ball and, after a few minutes spent repacking, I reclaimed her shoulder. And as the sun rose higher into the sky, we set out again toward Violet City, one Pokémon—and, I thought, one friend—stronger than the day before.

I was feeling pretty good... until I started feeling sick again.

* * *

Footnotes: (Note that these explanations are from the viewpoint of the author, not necessarily the narrator)

(1) "Herd sentries": The hierarchy of sentries in a standard Sentret colony is as follows: From highest to lowest: Chief Sentries, which guard the chief of the colony, usually high-level Furret (plural) guarding a Furret (singular); Nursery Sentries, which guard the eggs and infant Sentret; Warrior Sentries, which are usually Furret, and as their name suggests defend the colony from attack; Squad Sentries, which are the sentries that guard foraging parties; and Herd Sentries, which watch the colony day and night and alert the Warrior Sentries if an intruder approaches the colony; a position that any Sentret male older than seven months or Sentret female older than eight months could take.

(2)Weight comparison: This is true: Sentret, on average, are lighter than Chikorita; however, the difference is less than a pound (.9 lb exactly); this difference is slightly smaller (say about .5 lb) since Joshua is still a newborn and is not full size.

Rina (Ree-nah, or at least that's what I assume) the Sentret is not mine; she was submitted by Shadow-Aura-Knight. Here's hoping I can keep her in character!


	7. Of Fire and Water

A/N: Thanks to srgeman, 2percent, and Glacial Eidolon for the reviews; feedback always helps motivate me.

I don't know if this matters to any of you, but nevertheless I feel I should point it out: I am attempting to follow the _Diamond/Pearl/Platinum_ Pokédex standards as far as when Pokémon evolve and at what level they learn moves (for example, Generation II standards have Sentret learn Quick Attack at level 13, while Generation IV standards lower this to lv. 7).

The events of this chapter are based on the way I played the Generation II games—for whatever reason, I remember going to the Sprout Tower _before_ challenging Falkner, though I could be wrong…

Sorry this one took so long, by the way. School decided to drop two or three projects into my lap at once; while it's true I've only got one of those projects done so far, it was the largest, and I should have more time to work on chapter 8. I know this one feels rough: it's because I fell out of practice, which I did with my other stories: that was eventually what caused them to die. I won't let this one die, though, even if I stop getting reviews (which seems likely, as I get fewer of them every chapter).

Onward.

* * *

**Chapter VII – Of Fire and Water**

The first thing I was aware of, after a long while of being aware of nothing, was a warm, tingling sensation throughout my entire energy body… though I find that description to be rather lacking. How can I describe it to you if you've never experienced it? Honestly, listener, I don't think I can. The endless gray expanse that was the inside of my PokéBall seemed lit up in various colors—or was that my imagination?—while in the part of my ethereal energy form that corresponded to my head I felt as if something were gently being scrubbed away.

The sensation lasted for what seemed an eternity, and yet when it ended it felt like it had gone on for merely moments. It was an addicting feeling, and though I knew, somehow, that I didn't need any more, I couldn't help but desire more.

My energy body writhed and expanded, and when my eyes cleared I was standing on the hard, cold floor of a Pokémon Center, as denoted by the PokéBall-shaped decal I was standing on. I shook my head to clear it: being in a PokéBall messed with your head.

"Hey, Josh." I looked up and saw Karen smiling down at me. "Feeling better finally?"

'_Uh… Yeah, I guess.'_ When had she put me in my Ball? The last thing I remembered was debating with Rina over the tastes of certain berries… I sighed, feeling that there was no point thinking about it now. I felt fine; I could only hope that the Center's healing machine could keep Mew's bane at bay.

Wait… We were in a Pokémon Center.

'_We're in Violet City!?'_ I cried; Karen looked surprised.

"What's wrong?"

'_We're in Violet City!' _I cried again, pointlessly, as she carried me out of the Center. '_You know: city with a Flying-type Gym? The Gym where I'm going to __**get hurt**__!?'_

"What's bothering you?" she asked, dumbfounded. I sagged, realizing somewhat late that no matter what I said she'd never figure out what I meant.

"Here," she said finally, sitting down. Why did all the cities in Johto have such convenient benches by the side of the road? I never have found out. "Hungry?"

Still a little disgruntled—and more than a little apprehensive—I nodded. She proceeded to pull out The Bottle (I'd started to refer to it as a proper noun) and go through the process of actually making the formula. I wasn't really paying attention; I had slipped down off of her lap and sat next to her as she worked, my gaze roving left and right, trying to spot the Gym. Nothing stood out: a produce shop here, a Pokémon food store there. A tanning salon caught and held my attention for a moment—it was sunny already, but my little plant body would never mind _more_ sun—but then I looked past it, and found something worth my attention.

Sprout Tower.

I said, '_Oh._' My mouth remained open, and Karen, taking advantage of this, stuck the bottle in it, and put me in a better position to suckle. I tried to turn back around, but she wouldn't let me.

"You're a little hyper today, aren't you?" said Karen cheerfully. "Well, I've heard the Pokémon Center's healing machine can mess with Pokémon's minds the first few times they use it."

Hah! Right. That may or may not have been true, but I was hyper because I'd found a place to train.

The Sprout Tower, for those of you who don't know, is one of three (well… two, really) ancient Towers that stand in Johto, along with the Burned Tower (which isn't really a tower anymore) and the Tin Tower, both found in Ekruteak City. Unlike the other two (…or one), Sprout Tower is still used: a peculiar order of monks, calling themselves the Sprout Sages, manage the place. As the name of their order suggests, they all train Bellsprout, but for some reason never Weepinbell or Victreebell—at least, that's what everyone assumed.

The Tower is—and has been, since before even Champion Gold's (1) time—a place of training; the Tower is filled with wild Ratatta and the occasional Gastly, and the Sages themselves will challenge Trainers attempting to climb the tower. The Sages keep weak Pokémon, however; they always have, as Violet City is the registered first Gym City in Johto. It might not be as much help as I'd like, but if I could get Karen to train there, it could be the buffer we needed to take down Falkner.

"Seriously, Josh, what's up with you?" asked Karen as I continued to try to pull away. "Not hungry?" Here I calmed down for a minute, as I _was _still hungry and there was no point fighting on an empty stomach; after a moment, though, I mumbled around the nipple of the bottle that I was finished, and she took it away and began to pat me.

This was humiliating. For some reason I hadn't minded her doing this until now; but now we were in public, and she was treating me like a baby!

…Well, I was, but that's not really the point.

I burped. "Better?" she asked, and I nodded. "Now what's bothering you?"

I pushed myself away, down onto the bench, and thence onto the sidewalk, which felt far rougher than it had in Mahogany Town. Poor upkeep, I supposed.

"Where are you…?"

'_This way!' _I said, gesturing with my leaf in the direction of the Tower.

"What?" She was looking in the direction I'd gestured, not seeming to understand. I sighed, got back up on her lap, and pushed her chin up with my forefeet.

"…The Tower?" she asked. I nodded, glad she finally got it. "Why do you… Of course!" She laughed. "It's a good place to train. But why would _you _want to go there?" she continued as we started in that direction, I on my place upon her shoulder. "It's not like you know what it is…"

* * *

There were battles. I'm not going to give you the details: truth be told I don't remember them very well myself. I fought; Rina fought; both of us grew stronger; but the battles—and there were many that day in the Tower—have all blurred together in my mind, a mass of Bellsprout and Ratatta and Gastly. Perhaps by the end of that day I was ready for Falkner; but I didn't feel it. I—or rather all three of us—were exhausted, absolutely worn out. The Sages keep weak Pokémon, but challenging a weak Pokémon with another weak Pokémon means a long, and often monotonous, battle.

I do remember the end of the challenge, if only for one reason. I remember that the floor was hot, and that I was lying upon it, exhausted, as the last Sage recalled his last (or so we thought at the time) Pokémon.

Chikorita do not perspire; the heat energy is drawn out from our bodies and into our leaves and neck buds, and thence into scent glands; in rather a fit of irony, we actually smell _better_ after a workout. Judging from my aching body and the fact that even my heavy breathing did not supply me with enough oxygen (2), the room had to smell like a garden.

"Well done," said the Sage, who did not look fazed at all. I imagined he went through this a lot. "As commemoration for your climbing the Sprout Tower to the top, have this." And he stepped forward, around me as though I didn't even exist, and handed something (HM05-J, Flash (3)) to Karen, who accepted it with a soft "Thanks."

The floor was hot. The air around me was stifling, even though there were windows open all around the room. I was facing the central pillar… the famous central pillar of Sprout Tower, which actually vibrates from the fierceness of the battles taking place in the Tower. I felt terrible; exhausted, beat up, and now I felt as though I were in a too-hot steam bath; it was getting hard to focus on anything. Rina couldn't have been doing much better…

Or that was what I imagined, anyway.

**Rina**

* * *

Josh looked terrible.

I admit, I wasn't feeling exactly pristine myself; but he had been throwing himself whole-Spoink (4) at the other Pokémon, and had plenty of bruises and scratch marks to prove it.

And me without a single Oran berry!

I bounced nervously on my rear paws and slapped my long tail against the ground in agitation; the seconds grew numerous. Karen and the other human seemed to be conversing about something, but I wasn't fluent enough in Human to understand what. In any case I wouldn't have been listening: my attention was on the little Chikorita. He wasn't moving.

_Ohhh,_ I grumbled silently to myself, irritated at Karen. Wasn't she paying attention!?

Ignoring the humans, I moved forward and felt my agitation disappear as a glorious scent met my nose. I stopped and sniffed. It was _good_. It reminded me of home… It made me relax.

Only for a moment, as after that I picked up the sound of the Chikorita's labored breathing and actually managed to get in front of him. His eyes were open, but he didn't seem to see me; worried, I touched his forehead. He felt only a little warm; but when I touched his leaf I drew back my paw and had to consciously stop myself from screeching a warning: all the heat that wasn't in his small body was in his leaf.

'_Josh? You there?'_

He murmured something quite slowly, and I had to strain to make sense of it. '_Hhhhoooottt…'_

The room _was _warm. Though back where I'd been standing there'd been a little breeze from the window, there wasn't here; and as I stood looking down at the heat-blasted Chikorita I realized that my footpaws were getting warm… And then, suddenly, quite hot. From below I heard the sound of a human shouting commands, like Karen had to me, to tell me how to battle.

Was there a Fire-type beneath us? That seemed the only explanation, as every time I heard the human voice the floor would heat up. It couldn't have been good for Josh… But I couldn't move him, though I tried.

What in Arceus' name was Karen _doing!?_

"Josh!"

She was such an airhead!

With a concerned cry, she pushed past the other human and picked up Josh, still insensate. I tugged nervously at her pant leg, and she looked down at me, worried.

"He's so hot…" Karen worried, gingerly picking the Chikorita up.

There was a muffled shout from the floor beneath us. I wasn't practiced enough in Human to understand it, though it was hard to make any sounds out through the floor.

The door that we had come through to get to this level slammed open and bounced off of the wall, but was stopped on the way back to the frame by a large, orange-red, clawed paw. A Pokémon came into the room, a lizardlike thing whose entire body, except its yellow stomach, was covered with the same dark orange-red scales. Its eyes were a fierce blue, and I felt instantly that this Pokémon was _mean._

Instinctively, I recoiled onto my tail and screeched, feeling threatened. The other Pokémon locked eyes with me, and began to stump over to where I was, and suddenly I felt very small…

"Dante!" came a human's voice. This was male, though it was a higher pitch than the human already in the room. The Pokémon stopped and looked back at the door as the owner of the voice sauntered in.

This new human seemed—from my limited experience—about the same age as Karen, though he was taller. His head was covered by a blue-and-red cloth, and he wore a jacket made out of the same stuff as Karen's pants. _His_ pants were black, and so were his shoes, and I took one look at his face and saw the same sort of meanness I'd seen on his Pokémon's.

"My," he said after a moment. "What have we here?" I am no judge of human speech, but there was something different about his—the way he spoke had a lilt to it, and his vowel sounds lasted just a little long. "Might be a new Trainer?"

I glanced back at Karen, who was clutching Josh protectively.

"An' a tired one, too. I take it you just climbed the Tower all in one go?" He smiled, but there was no kindness in his smile. "Not smart. Yeh never know when you might be challenged: yeh've always got to be in top form."

Karen drew a shaky breath. "I…I can't battle right now."

"Well, if that's yer Sentret," he said without looking at me, and I jumped after I realized he was talking about me, "then I say you can."

"No."

All of us in the room, including, I noticed after a moment, Josh, turned our heads to look at the bald human, who was standing with an air of complete calmness in front of the vibrating pillar.

"What do you mean, 'no'?" asked the newcomer brusquely.

''_S'goin' on?' _mumbled Josh.

"She has completed her trial. She is under our protection until she leaves the Tower. You cannot battle her without defeating us." He paused and glanced downward. "I take it from the fact that you are here that I am the only Sage that stands in your way. But I am not head of this order for nothing." Here he drew out a Ball, and with a fluid motion cast his arm out; the Ball flew from his hand and burst open, revealing a yellow-bodied, bell-shaped Pokémon with evil-looking eyes and dangerous-looking vines.

I leapt away, even though I could tell, despite its appearance, that the Pokémon meant me no harm. I landed next to Karen, who backed away further, and I, being the only one of her Pokémon capable of doing so, stationed myself in front of her. I had to try to keep her safe.

I heard Karen pull something out of her pocket, and a weird, almost…well, _fake_-sounding voice entered the room.

"Victreebel, the Flycatcher Pokémon." And after a moment, "Charmeleon, the Flame Pokémon."

"Is that a challenge?" asked the younger human.

"Indeed," said the Sage quietly.

The human smiled, but once again it was an angry smile. "I see how it is. Well, they say one battle's as good as another; but I think I would have enjoyed fighting you more, rookie." His eyes shifted to the Sage. "Dominic Keaton, at yer service."

"Begin," said the Sage, still deathly quiet. And suddenly there was another human beside me—another Sage, it looked to be—and with a gesture and a soft word to Karen, he began to lead us out of the Tower.

* * *

**Joshua**

'_What happened…?' _I asked, still woozy, as I was handed back to Karen. She didn't respond, but I hadn't expected her to; I'd expected Rina to respond, but she hadn't.

'_Where's…?_'

"Josh, I know you're probably still a little tired, but you'll be okay," said Karen reassuringly. "I don't really understand what happened, but they had to draw all the excess heat out of your leaf, and since you're a plant…"

I made an exhausted sigh.

"Want to go into your PokéBall?"

'_No…'_ And I pressed myself closer to her to back up my point.

"Alright, alright…" I felt her sit down; she touched my leaf as if to stroke it, but her fingers burned, and I flinched away. "Huh? Oh! I'm sorry, Josh, I didn't think…"

Yeah, that was Karen. Very rarely did she think before she tried to help someone. A good trait, usually.

'_Where's Rina?'_

"What?"

I groaned and gave up on talking. Fortunately Karen decided to muse over what happened anyway, so I got the details from the moment the battle was over and I'd apparently passed out to when I'd woken up feverish in her arms.

"Dominic… That's a pretty widespread name, but his accent… He was definitely Fioran…"

He sounded to me like a jerk. In every generation there was always a group of Trainers who thought they were better than everyone else, just because they were who they were: Ren's rival Arman had been that way, and from what I heard, I assumed Dominic was the same.

The air in the Pokémon Center was refreshingly cool; compared to the heat at the top of Sprout Tower we may as well have been in the Ice Cave. I even now don't know exactly what caused me to faint; I can only assume exhaustion and heat had taken their toll on my not-two-weeks-old body.

"I don't like him," stated Karen with an air of finality. I nodded weakly. "…But I'm worried about what he said. He wanted to fight me, but Sage Li got in his way… I bet he'll be after me." She sighed. "And here I was hoping to avoid having a rival."

'_I'm tired,'_ I told her, yawning. She looked at her Pokétch, told me I had every right to be tired and hungry, and, with me still in her arms, hurried to the counter to see about renting a room. (5)

* * *

It rained that night.

I was the kind of person that enjoyed rain. Even when I was a human, I'd stand outside (under an awning: I wasn't stupid enough to stand _in _the rain) and listen and watch. Thunderstorms were comforting to me; though this wasn't a thunderstorm, and I was the only one in the room fascinated by the falling rain.

I had fallen asleep for a few hours, wrapped in Karen's arms, full and happy and secure. Rina, who had simply been in her PokéBall, was curled up at the foot of the bed. The room was, amazingly, empty otherwise: apparently no other Trainers had rented the room's other bunks. I had woken up several hours later to the sound of rain, and wormed my way out of Karen's arms to stare out the window.

I wouldn't have wanted to be outside, I knew. It was turning to summer, but the rains in Johto stay cold until well into June; and in any case this was a night shower, bound to be freezing. I could feel the cold through the windowpane, and my quick little breaths kept fogging up the same spot.

Tomorrow, Karen insisted, we would attempt Falkner. I was still nervous, even though the training in the Sprout Tower had jumped me up to level 10, statistically on par or superior to the bulk of the Pokémon on Falkner's registered teams. But I knew nothing of battles; and when it came down to it the little part of me that was really a Chikorita was quaking in fear from the very idea of Flying Pokémon.

"…Jj…Joshua…"

I started, and turned toward Karen. Her arms were still crossed, as she'd been holding me, but she began to draw them tight as I watched, curling into a fetal position.

'_Karen?'_

"Nnn…"

She was shaking. Concerned, I dropped back down to the floor and then propelled myself up onto the bed again.

'_Karen?'_

She made a sound like "Uh, uh," and turned toward the wall. Then, "Joshua…m'sor…" A pause as she trembled. "…m'sorry...!"

I stared at her there for a long time as she shook and cried and mumbled my name. She was holding onto it, just like Myst had said, and the stress of the day was bringing the guilt—that _I _thought she had brushed aside—right back. She thought that if she hadn't called me, I wouldn't have died.

'_Karen.'_ She did not acknowledge me, so I tried again. '_Karen!'_

"Joshu…Hh?"

'_Karen Ashlocke.'_

"Josh?" she mumbled, rolling back over. Even in the dark I could see her eyes were red and puffy. She sniffled. "Ah… I-I'm sorry, I…" She gasped as I interrupted her apology by pressing myself against her, as firmly as gently as I could.

'_I forgive you,_' I said, though I had never blamed her to begin with. And something of what I said must have crossed the language barrier, because as she fell back asleep that night, with me back in her arms, the look on her face and the sound of her relaxed breathing told me she was at peace.

Outside, it continued to rain. Oh, how I loved the rain…

* * *

**The Listener**

'_Oh, how I would grow to hate the rain,' _Joshua murmurs, his gaze far away. The Listener stares at him for another moment, and then he seems to remember it is there. He looks at it with cold frustration in his eyes, and bites out, '_But that's a story for another time. I'm done talking for now, go find some other troubled soul to listen to.'_

It does as he asks, leaving him alone where he sits. As it leaves, the Listener hears him curl up into a sleeping position and mutter some name or other. The moon is rising, and Joshua has been speaking since noon; best to let him rest, the Listener decides, and goes to its den to do the same.

* * *

Footnotes:

(1)Champion Gold: Gold (male player character of Gen II) is no longer Champion of Johto by this point, though he managed to hold the title for about seven years—a record number, far surpassing the next-longest officeholder, who'd held the position for four years. Gold's Championship was about thirty-five years before the events of this story, and as such is "ancient history," especially for Joshua, who never did pay attention in History in any case.

(2)Lack of oxygen: Chikorita (and, I hope it's implied, its evolutions) are, technically, plants, but are also living beings, and like all other living beings on the planet that respire they require oxygen. Like most plants, Chikorita naturally take in carbon dioxide (through their leaves), and normally will release oxygen back into the air; however, when a Chikorita requires more oxygen than breathing alone will provide, the oxygen produced is sent directly to the Chikorita's lungs, allowing respiration (and therefore life) to continue.

(3)HM05-J: HMs are categorized differently in each region, and in some cases certain HMs are not recognized as such in certain regions. For example, Dive is considered an HM only in Hoenn, because that is the only place in the country with water deep enough to Dive under; likewise, Defog is recognized only in Sinnoh as it is the only place plagued by torrential fog. To differentiate which set of HM standards is being followed, the first letter of the region is attached to the HM number—in this case, HM05-J means Hidden Machine 5, Johto standard.

(4)"Whole-Spoink": I admit, this one may be a bit hard to reason out. It's like saying "whole hog."

(5)Renting: There are rooms for rent in Pokémon Centers which are free if and only if one's Pokémon is staying overnight; otherwise they must be paid for (the sum is a small amount, much cheaper than staying at a hotel, though at the cost of having to sleep with other Trainers whom you may not know.

* * *

A/N: Doubtless you notice that the end of this chapter is written in a different style than the rest of the story so far. I was simply curious—in all of the reborn stories, especially (if I may be so bold) _A Little Night Music_, the narrators refer to a listener, one to whom they are telling the story. Though it was my original intent to leave this for the end of the story, I decided at the last minute to introduce it now; these so-called "present-tense" sections, narrated by the enigmatic, silent Listener, will reappear from time to time, but not consistently. I think it's a good idea, but then I'm biased toward my own stories. Tell me what you think, hmm?

Until next time.


	8. Withstanding the Gale

A/N: First Gym Leader, already? I know it's moving awfully fast compared to other stories, but it'll slow down later on, I promise. Patience.

I was actually expecting this chapter to take a lot longer, since I still had one project to do (which is now finished, faster than I expected); as well as the fact that my uncle is visiting and spends a lot of time on the computer. He's out for the moment, however, and I've taken advantage of that and finished the chapter far faster than I expected to.

This chapter's music recommendation: Enemy Attack, the boss theme from _Final Fantasy X._ I listened to it while writing the second half of the fight, and it works quite well to set the mood.

EDIT (05/10/09): Two things were fixed: first, the first footnote, which for some reason had heretofore been designated (2), has been changed to (1). Also, the statement that Karen had never battled a Trainer before has been changed to "never battled a Gym Leader..."

Also: Readers beware. Another user, under the penname ChristianWinstonChandler, has stolen the title and summary of my story and placed it under this category. _**DO NOT READ IT.**_ It is filled with rather unpleasent and inappropriate content. In other words, for those of you that find my story by browing the Pokémon category, _only _click on this story's title if _I,_ Diego Zeyon, am the marked author.

Good day.

**Chapter VIII – Withstanding the Gale**

'_You're back,'_ says Joshua, staring warily at the Listener. '_I'm…honestly surprised. Is my story…my _life_…really that interesting to you?'_

The Listener doesn't offer its opinions about Joshua's tale, but instead drops several berries onto the ground before the Grass Pokémon. It waits a moment, politely, for Joshua to take one, and when he doesn't it reaches down and plucks a Sitrus berry from the middle of the pile and begins to eat it.

'_Trying to entice me, huh?'_ Joshua laughs, bending down to grab an Aspear. He chews it thoughtfully, staring at the Listener, who remains politely silent, waiting for him to begin.

It takes a few minutes, as apparently Joshua's not had breakfast yet, and by the time he and the Listener are finished, the bulk of the berries are gone.

Joshua sighs, settling down in a place where the dawn sun was shining and would continue to shine the whole day. '_Ready?'_

* * *

**Joshua**

When I woke up in the morning the clouds were parting and the sun was shining down on Violet City, though the ground was still wet. Underneath trees it would doubtless still be showering.

I was still entwined in Karen's arms, the way we'd fallen asleep last night. I could tell from her shallower breathing, however, that she was already awake. Waiting for me, no doubt.

'_G'morning,_' I muttered.

"Good morning, Josh," Karen replied sleepily, stroking my leaf. It didn't hurt much anymore, for which I was grateful. Rina had taken my place at the windowsill apparently, curled up into a small brown bundle next to the outside world. I wondered how she was dealing with capture. For all that she put a satisfied face on for the rest of the world, looking at the way she got as close to nature and as far from man as she could, I figured there was still a little mistrust to be worked out.

But hey, she was a Sentret. I suppose you can't rush a species that's by nature the definitive fraidy-Delcatty. Well, aside from Delcatty themselves…

Karen left me in the bed, standing up and rifling through her bag. When she closed the blinds, I realized she was going to change here, and I, more self-conscious than any normal Chikorita, I rolled into the warm spot my cousin had left in the bed and shut my eyes. Tightly.

This was awkward, and Karen _wasn't _a Ninetales, so she should know what awkward was. In her mind, I assumed, _I _was too young to care what she looked like and _Rina_ was wild so she wouldn't care about humans' appearances; and in any case we were both Pokémon, why would we care what she looked like?

"Hah?" My cousin picked me up. "What's up, Joshua?"

'_Nothing,_' I said, my eyes still shut.

She didn't say anything for a moment, probably thinking, again, what a weird Pokémon I was.

"Are you…trying to respect my privacy?" Here she laughed—she actually _laughed_—and I felt my cheeks burn, embarrassed. "I don't know where you'd have picked that up… some Pokémon at the Day Care, maybe…" She hugged me, and since I felt clothes on her shoulders I opened my eyes. "That's so sweet of you, Josh!"

Sweet? It's culturally a no-no for cousins to look at each other naked. Well, not if they're both toddlers, I supposed, but considering she was fifteen and I was, technically, older still, never mind the fact that I was a week-and-a-half old Chikorita, I think we didn't quite fit that condition. At least as a Pokémon I couldn't feel _too_ bad about _her_ looking at _me_ naked.

…I'm sorry. I'm probably disturbing you, talking about this as I am. I'll move on.

* * *

It was going to be a partly cloudy day, I decided. The sun was still golden-orange in its rising, but thin, spent rainclouds still dotted the sky and occasionally impeded it. Karen stepped out of the Pokémon Center, stopped, and then started heading west, east, in the direction of the Gym.

I was still nervous, of course. Yeah, I know I keep bringing that up, but I _was._ This was the first of the many Gyms in Johto, but it was also the first of several that Chikorita were useless in, including Aaron's, Kain's(1), and my brother's.

And yet now, the combination of clear sunlight and humid air made me feel completely confident. The rational part of me told me that this was going to hurt; the irrational part decided it didn't care.

I was still trying to reason this out when I realized that I no longer felt sick. Mew's bane had apparently caught up with me yesterday, in the heat from Dominic's ruthless battles below us, but now I felt better than ever. Had he decided I'd repaid my debt? Or was he just being nice, giving me a chance in a battle that I expected to lose? I wouldn't find out until later, and in any case the question was pushed out of my mind as we entered the Gym.

There was a soft carpet on the floor, which was mostly purple except where Karen was standing, where it resolved itself into a black field with white Zephyrbadges upon it. This design followed a path of sorts, up to the receptionist's deck and off in two other directions—one path for the spectators, one for the challenger. Said receptionist was a thin woman who looked to be in her late forties, with the kind of drawn, bony face that made her look like being in a Flying Gym was the right thing for her. Her gaze, as I'd expected, was piercing, but when she spoke it was gentle.

"A challenger?"

"Yes, ma'am," replied Karen. She hadn't spoken much on the way to the Gym, and now I realized why. Her voice was shaky: she was just as nervous as I was. I felt terrible for assuming I was the only one with nerves, but now wasn't the time to apologize, nor, I figured, would she understand my intent if I tried.

Bird-lady looked down at her roster. "Well, you've got good timing. He's free." She pointed to her right, our left. "That's the door for challengers; give him a moment, though, Falkner doesn't get around like he used to."

She returned to her computer-based Solitaire game, and began to ignore us. I prodded Karen, and she, realizing that the receptionist was done with her, nodded and followed the receptionist's instructions.

The Violet Gym is one of the two Flying Gyms in the country; the other is in Hoenn, and used to be run by the world-famous Winona. Falkner had never achieved the fame (or perhaps more appropriately infamy) that Winona had for being a ruthless Trainer; within regulations his Gym Pokémon couldn't exceed level seventeen, so he had little chance of this. I don't know how the Fortree Gym is set up, never having been to Hoenn, but the Violet City Gym is like a large dome—a very wide, very tall dome. There was only one battlefield, set in the center of the room, filled with sand, but empty space abounded around and above it(2). There were windows—more accurately, large rectangular holes through birds could come and go. There were bleachers to both sides, wooden, but finished a deep plum; they were empty, and I wondered—for the first time, but not for the last—why so many seats were necessary, when most Trainers traveled solo and therefore had no audience.

There was a shuffling sound from the other end of the hall—it echoed in all the empty space, and carried a sad quality that I couldn't quite identify. Karen (and I by proxy) turned toward the sound, and both of us set our eyes on Falkner Aaronsen.

Falkner is arguably the least-known Gym Leader; his reputation dropped like a Rock-type after Winowna gained her Gym in Hoenn; he had inherited the Gym from his father, had carried on the older Aaronsen's love of Flying Pokémon; and yet he had toiled in Winona's shadow, and for naught. Most people—even in Johto—didn't know what he looked like.

The Falkner we saw was not the arrogant, fiery young man that Gold had challenged. This Falkner was old—past fifty, maybe close to sixty, his hair fading to violet-tinged silver. He was limping—he favored his right leg, and used a cane in time with his left. His clothes looked only slightly shabby, but not worn out, as though he favored them. His eyes, however, did not look as old as the rest of him: clear and focused they were, like a Noctowl staring down its prey. On his right arm (the one not occupied with the cane), and in such a relaxed state I could swear it was a part of the man, was a Pidgey. When it saw me, its eyes became as focused as its master's, and I quailed in Karen's arms.

"A challenger." Falkner's voice echoed back from the empty bleachers. "It's been a long time since I've had a challenger."

His voice was strong, like his eyes; Falkner's physical age belied his emotional one, and I realized that this was no old codger that would be a pushover to defeat. An old man he may have been, but Falkner was still a Gym Leader.

Gingerly, Karen set me down, and I, in response to his words, took a closer look at the bleachers. There was a fine layer of dust on the tiers that I could see, as though the seats had been empty for several days. I wondered what Falkner considered a "long time."

"How many Pokémon do you have?" Falkner barked at Karen.

"Two." Her voice was still tense, as was the rest of her. My respect of my cousin grew as I recognized her determination and resolve; I doubt I, were I in her place, would have been able to even hold the old man's harsh gaze.

"Fine." Falkner turned his head and whispered something to the Pidgey settled on his arm, who fluttered onto the field.

I looked up at Karen, wondering if she would call me out first. She was biting her lip, staring apprehensively at Rina's PokéBall; her gaze twitched up to the Pidgey, then back to the Ball, then finally settled on me.

"Go for it, Josh."

My heart was in my throat, but for her sake I steeled myself and stepped into the ring.

"Before we begin," Falkner began, "what's your name?"

"Karen, s-sir. Karen Ashlocke."

"Ashlocke…" I noticed a faraway look in the old man's eyes. "You wouldn't be from…Azalea, would you?"

"Uh… Yes, sir." I stared at him, and I figured Karen was doing the same. How would he know that?

"I remember your father," said Falkner, and just like that, the tension in the room was shattered.

"Really?" asked Karen.

The old man laughed. "I remember, him and his Pikachu… I was so mad, I thought they'd started to give out Electric-type starters… It was still a fun battle. One of my favorites, to this day."

"He talked about that, actually." Karen actually seemed amiable now, and Falkner, for all his gruffness, began to seem more like a grandfatherly figure. The Pidgey's gaze hadn't left me, however, and nor had I forgotten that this would eventually turn into a battle. "He said you looked like you were going to explode, you were so angry…"

Falkner cackled, in the way only old people could. "Well, maybe this is fate's way of giving me my justice."

I heard Karen gasp behind me, and I shifted into the ready stance that Myst had taught me. There would be no blind attacking this time: I had to focus, or it would all be over.

Falkner barked a command like a Fearow diving for its prey: it was so fast I heard Karen gasp again in confusion, and then I couldn't see.

_Sand Attack!_

My eyes were burning, and I lacked sufficient limbs to rub at them. While I was busy shaking my head to clear my eyes, I heard Falkner shout again; wind tore into me, and I felt myself being blown backward, head-over-leaf, and rolled to an ungraceful stop.

"Josh!"

'_Karen!_' I shouted back, getting to my feet and trying to focus on the Pidgey. My eyes were still burning, but I forced myself to look anyway. _Come on, Karen, give me an order!_

She did. "Tackle!" I ran at the Pidgey, who had settled on the ground after the Gust attack, but it flew up and out of my reach. I spun to a halt, staring up at it.

'_Hahaha!_' it cried, flying circles about me. '_Stupid no-wings cannot fly!'_

"Razor Leaf!" Karen cried, and I, grimacing, obeyed. The leaves, though, as they separated, did not hurt this time, and I wondered if it was the adrenaline or just the fact that my body was getting used to the attack.

"Dodge!" snapped Falkner.

"Again!" shouted Karen. And I did so twice more; but the annoyingly agile Pidgey fluttered around all of the attacks.

"Gust!"

"Dodge!"

Karen was frazzled already: I could hear it in her voice. She had never battled a Gym Leader before, and was unused to the quick thinking it doubtless required. She was acting on reflex, as was I. The Pidgey and I stared at each other, and I could feel Karen's eyes on me. The match was a stalemate for now, but I knew I couldn't keep up much longer.

"Tackle!" Falkner ordered. The Pidgey swooped over my head, but I turned, trying to keep an eye on it. It made a U-turn, and very suddenly, the Chikorita in me noticed, there was a bird coming straight for me.

"Razor Leaf!" said Karen, spying an opportunity. I found myself caught between two opinions—ignore her and move, or follow her orders. At the last second I chose the latter, and this time the leaves did not miss.

The Pidgey cried out in pain as the leaves tore at its wings; it veered off to one side, and I followed.

"We got it on the run, Josh!" Karen Murkrowed(3). "Tackle!" But the Pidgey rose at the last second, and I had to nearly sit down where I was to stop from passing outside the boundary.

'_Hahahah!' _I heard the Pidgey mock me again. It turned the flight into another Tackle, and I froze, until Karen shouted the next command, and I obliged.

A purple, dust-fine powder erupted from my neck buds, forming a cloud right in front of me. I leapt to the side, to avoid the Tackle, and shifted in time to see the Pidgey burst through the cloud of Poisonpowder, coughing.

"Razor Leaf!"

The Pidgey was already woozy—Poisonpowder is nonlethal, but extremely painful and very fast-working. It made no attempt to dodge my attack, and after a moment it nosedived into the ground and did not move again.

Breathing heavily, and with my scent filling the immediate area, I turned back to look at Falkner with a "how-about-that-for-justice?" look on my face. The Gym Leader's face held no expression as he recalled the Pidgey; he looked at me for a moment, mumbled something darkly, and looked away.

"That was the easy one." And so saying, he tossed out another Ball, which erupted with white light, forming into the shape of a much larger, much scarier looking Bird Pokémon.

Pidgeotto.

The mystery of Falkner's Pidgeotto has, to my knowledge, never been solved. Violet Gym regulations state that the Pokémon that the Gym Leader uses in Gym battles cannot exceed level seventeen, unless the challenger is using Pokémon over that level. I heard Karen scan the thing with her Pokédex, and sure enough, the Pidgeotto was only level twelve.

That was fine, except for the fact that Pidgey don't become Pidgeotto until level 18, and there is no way known to man for Pokémon to _lose_ levels.

At the moment, I wasn't too concerned with all of that. All I saw was a Pokémon who stood taller by almost a foot, and who weighed significantly more than I could, and that, most importantly, could fly.

I said a word that a Chikorita of my age shouldn't have known.

"Josh," I heard Karen start. "You've got to keep moving—"

"Sand Attack!" interrupted Falkner, and then "Quick Attack!"(4)

In quick succession I was blinded and slammed into, and I scrambled to find purchase before I was pushed out of the arena.

When I was able to open my eyes again, everything seemed murky and out of focus. I hoped dearly that the eye damage wasn't permanent.

"Quick Attack, again!"

Karen got "Poisonpow—" out before the Pigeotto hit me, but I'd begun to attack on reflex before the massive bird even got to me. I expected it to veer off at the last second, either to avoid the toxic cloud or to stop the pain, but it did neither.

There was a split second when I realized that there was suddenly a Pidgeotto in my face.

Then I knew nothing at all.

**Karen**

I had to leap out of the way to avoid the Pidgeotto, its momentum carrying it straight through to the Trainer box at the edge of the field. It banked off to its right and settled down back on its side of the field.

Josh rolled to a stop at my feet, and I knelt down and gingerly picked him up. The Chikorita was unconscious, but recoiled in pain as I softly touched his head, looking for any serious injuries. A bruise was forming on the side of his head, and his eyes, when I checked them, looked extremely irritated.

"Bring out your other," said Falkner, all the friendliness gone from his voice.

"One moment," I snapped, unusually bold. How dare he rush me when my sweet, honorable little Chikorita was injured!

"_Chikorita,_" he whimpered.

"Shh," I told him gently, and then let Rina out onto the field.

The Sentret screeched in terror as soon as she saw the Pidgeotto; she turned toward me, and I could see fear in her eyes.

"You've got to fight," I told her. She stared at me, seeming incredulous.

"Quick Attack!" snapped Falkner.

"Quick Attack, but circle around it!" The Pidgeotto was a higher level, but Rina was still faster: the Sentret turned the Quick Attack into a speed boost and dodged to the side, then flung herself at the Bird Pokémon.

This resulted in the Pidgeotto suddenly having an angry, frightened Sentret on its back. Falkner gasped as his Pokémon's flight wavered with the addition of this new weight, but he quickly saw past it. "Turn over, Pidgeotto! Get it off!"

"Scratch!" I told Rina quickly, and she managed to get two decent attacks off before the Pidgeotto flung her off.

"_Sennn!"_ she cried, tumbling.

"Recover!" I told her quickly, and she did, flinging her tail out below her and landing on it with a breathless "_Tret!"_

"Sand Attack!" The Pidgeotto landed and spread its wings.

"Move!" Rina dodged again, springing up into the air off of her tail; the sand passed harmlessly under her. "Defense Curl! And roll forward!" The Sentret tucked her tail up with the rest of her body and contracted herself into a small sphere, and began to tumble forward. "And now, Quick Attack!" She turned the roll into forward momentum, and then she was just a brown blur.

Falkner and his Pidgeotto were both caught completely off-guard. I had picked up the theory of the move watching a Contest Battle on TV. I would have been surprised if he'd never seen the move before, but he had failed to anticipate it, and it cost him the battle. Rina bounced right off of the Pidgeotto; the Bird Pokémon tumbled backwards and skidded right through the bounds.

There was absolute silence in the dome. Then, "You won."

Falkner's voice was flat, but he was obviously upset and scowled as he called the bird back to his side. It wasn't even knocked out. I'd won on a technicality, an old rule that had existed since before even my father's time. But regardless, I'd won.

"Hah!" Falkner cackled after a moment. "Like father, like daughter. Both of you managed to pull of some pretty spectacular moves. And I have to say I'm impressed with that Chikorita of yours. He thinks fast."

He shuffled slowly around the battlefield, and pulled out a Zephyrbadge. "Here, then, young Ashlocke. Your first badge."

He handed it to me, and I stared at it for a moment before stuttering out a "Th-thank you, sir."

He grunted. "Good day." And just like that, he turned and shuffled out.

"_Chikorita,_" whimpered Josh again. I'd practically forgotten the Chikorita was in my arms!

I was out the door to the lobby faster than a Buneary down its hole, but I was forced to stop to avoid running into the boy from Sprout Tower the day before.

Dominic Keaton.

He was clapping slowly, sarcastically, with a half-grin on his face. "Well done, eh, rookie. But Falkner's jus' the firs' step: yeh've a long way to go yet."

"I can't fight you now," I told him irritably.

"Nae, I doubt y'can. Nor do I expect ye to. But I'd be careful on the way to the nex' town, ye ken?"(5)

And on that disturbing note, he turned and left. In my arms, Josh growled weakly, as though able to tell the youth was there and hating him. I pushed Dominic out of my mind and rushed out the door for the Pokémon Center.

**Joshua**

You know how you're never aware of time passing when you're asleep? If you don't dream, you can close your eyes what seems one moment and open them again, and it's morning.

That wasn't quite the case here. I wasn't aware of time passing until there was a reason for me to, but as soon as consciousness—or some good imitation thereof—returned I realized that I'd been out for several minutes.

I also realized that instead of there being a Pidgeotto in my face, there was a Mew.

"You're back," I said, surprised.

"Don't think I'm done with you yet," he said, ignoring me. "I let you off because I'm not cruel: I wanted you to have all the advantage you could get in that battle."

"Why?"

"For Karen's sake. Not yours."

"And why do you care?"

"Because she asked me to."

"Karen?" I realized he couldn't possibly be talking about her. If she was talking to Mew, she would have known who I was. "No… Then who?"

Mew didn't answer. The pink feline floated around me, his eyes never leaving me; but nor did mine leave him.

"Who?" I asked again. "Who would be able to talk to you that gives a Rattata's rear about either me or Karen?"

"Don't expect to feel any better for the next few days, either."

"Mew, stop ignoring me!"

The blue eyes were icy, and behind the ice was a storm. I knew I was pushing it, but I didn't care.

"I'm sorry, alright? Totally, honestly, sincerely, I am _sorry_ I pulled on your tail." I took a breath, tried to think of something else to say, and failed.

Mew seemed to be chewing on his tongue in thought.

"Can you _please_ stop making me feel ill? I miss all the important things." Well, as of that point I'd really missed only _one_ important _thing_, but it couldn't hurt to overstate things.

"I'll… think about that," he said, sounding almost uncertain. The void, such as it was, began to fade, and my vision was filled with the rainbow color that signified a Pokémon Center's healing machine. As the rest of my mind was washed away in bliss, I thought I heard, faintly, "…and thank you for apologizing."

* * *

(1)Aaron and Kain: Aaron Spreigh, the Azalea Gym Leader who replaced Bugsy when the other became a full-fledged scientist; despite his name, he has no relation to the Sinnoh E4's Aaron, who also trained Bug-types; Eric "Kain" Ravenwood, the Blackthorn Gym Leader who replaced Claire after the other retired.

(2)Empty space: National battling rules mandate that no Pokémon may _set foot_ outside the battlefield in a Pokémon Gym. This law obviously has loopholes: Flying Pokémon may pass in and out of the bounds as they please, as long they aren't touching the ground. In most cases this is an advantage to the challenger, except in Violet and Fortree Gyms, where the tables turn. Despite the fact that this law has been in place since before Red's time, no one has ever seen fit to change it.

(3)Murkrowed: Once again, this could be either extremely obvious or extremely subtle. If you can't figure it out, it's like "crowed." Get it? It's terrible, I know…

(4)Quick Attack: I'm breaking my own rule here (Pidgeotto is LV. 12, and Quick Attack isn't learned until LV. 13), but I wanted there to be some kind of difference between Pidgey and Pidgeotto other than the obvious evolution. Besides, how Falkner got a level 12 Pidgeotto is a mystery anyway: why not compound it? Ha, ha…

(5)"Yeh ken?": For those of you who don't know, the word "ken" is often synonymous with the word "know."

Until next time.


	9. Noah

A/N: I should have gotten this finished yesterday, but I didn't. It was my birthday, though, I guess I couldn't have expected any different.

Yes, I'm now a year older… But that doesn't have any bearing on this chapter, so I'll not mention it again.

Thanks for the reviews. Do keep them up. This chapter was finished at roughly 9:30 at night, so it may be a little rough—but that's what revisions are for, eh? We'll see.

Onward.

**Edit (06/01/09): **I'll have to ask your pardon for not updating recently. Truth be told I've not worked on chapter 10 much at all: but then I hope you've taken into account the time of year. This week is the last week of school for me, and naturally that means final exams are forthcoming. I've been hard-pressed to have any free time at all; but the load should lessen this week, and naturally will be gone as of Friday noon (Yayfor half days!), so give me another week, and I'll try to have you another chapter.

But to tell you that is not the main goal of this update. This is the revised version of chapter 9, and for those of you who don't want to read the entire document to find all the changes, they are listed here:  
-Noah's last name and the footnote addressing it have been changed/removed, respectively. I still would like to take the chance to suggest his theme--"Dear World," by Reasoner, on Newgrounds.  
-Dominic's other Pokémon has been changed from a Scyther to a Venonat.  
-Spellchecker has been rerun, and grammar has been given a revision where necessary.  
-Joshua now behaves more correctly (that is to say, sick) where necessary, rather than spontaneously feeling better after Noah's introduction.  
-A footnote concerning the identity of the Pokémon Dominic catches at the end of the chapter has been added. Do not read it unless you've read all the other chapters; though I would reccomend against reading it whatever the case, if you are one of those people that think I am succumbing to the "overused Pokémon" cliché, the note is for you.

**Chapter IX – Noah**

True to his word, Mew no longer held off on me after we beat Falkner.

That's not to say that I was suddenly deathly ill the instant Karen released me from my PokéBall that afternoon; it was not until the evening that I began to feel green (no pun intended), so apparently either Mew had decided to leave off for a few hours, or my earlier assumption—that the Center's healing machine stymied Mew's bane—was correct.

The sun was setting, orange light pouring in unimpeded through the window in Karen's room at the Pokémon Center. It wasn't dark enough yet to bother turning the lights on, and so everything in the room was either glowing bright orange or cloaked in a violet-hued shadow.

'_Josh? You okay?'_ Rina asked, scampering up onto the upper bunk, where Karen had placed me before leaving the room to find a place to get supper.

It took me a moment to even realize she'd spoken. Blinking slowly, I turned toward the Sentret and mumbled an affirmative.

'_Are you sure?_' Rina knelt down and took a closer look. I got another look at her remarkable green eyes. '_You look… um…sick.'_

I felt it, too. It manifested largely as a headache, something of a cross between a migraine and a sinus headache. I had to face away from the window to avoid getting my retinas burned out (or so it felt) and with each rapid beat of my Chikorita heart the pressure behind and between my eyes throbbed.

'_I wonder if Karen has any Oran berries,_' said Rina, jumping down off the bunk. I flinched at the sound of her body hitting the tiled floor.

'_No,'_ I grunted, '_unless she picked them up somewhere when I wasn't looking._' This didn't seem to discourage Rina, and I heard her trying to figure out how to open Karen's bag. '_Don't bother. Really complicated. You'll never—'_

I heard the sound of a zipper opening. '_Oh. That was easy.'_

'_Hey!'_ Rina shouldn't be going through Karen's stuff! I tried to pull myself to the edge of the bunk to reprimand her, but only managed to increase my headache. '_Aggh! Rina, s-stop, you shouldn't…'_

'_Josh? What's wrong?' _asked Rina. '_Now I know something's wrong. Tell me._'

'_Stop obsessing. Just a headache.' _Not to mention a roiling stomach and blurry vision. For all that I'd attempted to placate the pink feline earlier, I figured Mew was taking this revenge thing far too seriously.

Rina managed to find some way back up onto the bunk, and was about to ask something else when the door opened and someone other than Karen walked in.

The newcomer was a boy, no older than thirteen, and even assuming that was a stretch. He had a mass of untamed brown hair, brownish eyes, and stood at--hazarding a guess in retrospect--about five feet, two inches. He was wearing worn, faded jeans and a red flannel shirt, along with a pair of glasses that made his eyes look massive.

The most remarkable thing about this boy, though, was that he walked with a walking stick. It was slightly taller than he was, and looked to be made of--I took a closer look, focusing despite the agony in my head--walnut, or perhaps oak. Regardless of what type of wood it was, it looked very sturdy and well-worn. A moment later, looking down at his shoes, I noticed why he needed it. It was difficult to tell the specifics at that point, but for one, the foot on the staff side was held slightly off of the ground, and ever-so-slightly askew. The jean leg was tucked into the shoe, but clumsily, as though he lacked feeling in that foot.

"Oh," said the boy after a moment. "Is this room taken already?"

I was irritated for a moment, but I realized then that his voice sounded utterly exhausted, and that he was leaning heavily on the staff--more so than he should have, with just a single bum leg. It wasn't my choice, ultimately, whether to send him off or not, but my vote was a no ("No, don't send him off"), so I nodded in answer to his question and then patted the bunk I was lying on.

The boy limped into the room, and I realized after a moment what a stupid suggestion I'd made. How was he supposed to climb to the upper bunk? He didn't seem to mind, however, stepping around Rina and to the back of the bed (toward the window), leaning the walking stick against the wall. With a series of hopping motions he proceeded to climb on his one good leg, finally seating himself on the edge.

I realized I was in his way. '_Umm.' _I tried to stand, but the moment I managed to find all four of my feet I had to collapse again, dizzy.

"Oh, are you.....?" Gingerly he stepped back down onto the floor and, using the bed for support, hopped around to where I was. "You don't look so good, little guy. Where's your Trainer at?"

'_Out,_' I told him shortly, gesturing toward the door.

"Well, I guess she'll be back later, but..." He sat down in one of the comfy chairs in the corner nearest the window. The sun had fallen behind the buildings by this point, and I could look toward him. "A Chikorita and a Sentret, huh?" He smiled in the dark. "I have a Chikorita, too. But she's my only Pokémon so far..."

I stared at him in confusion, something that had been nagging me since he'd entered finally revealing itself. He wore no PokéBalls, and nor were there any Pokémon out with him. Then I realized he must have been so exhausted because he'd been battling, and his Chikorita was being healed.

"I've never really seen a Sentret before," he continued amiably, as though we were old friends and not two total strangers of two different species. "They're so hard to catch. So cautious. Your Trainer's kinda lucky."

Rina made a happy sound, pleased by the compliment, then proceeded to look through Karen's things again.

'_Rina, stop!'_ I snapped again, and I heard her oblige.

It was quiet in the room for another few minutes. I suffered in silence, not wanting to impose anything upon the crippled boy.

Then I wrenched my eyes shut and screamed as light exploded out of nowhere. I heard the boy gasp, and Karen said "Josh, what's wrong--Josh?"

And then I was in her arms and I buried my face in her shoulder to block out the light.

"Who...?" I heard Karen ask.

"I didn't… I swear!" said the boy hurriedly. "I thought he was a little sick when he came in, maybe he's a little light sensitive right now..."

"Why would that be?" Karen pulled me away from her shoulder, and I kept my eyes firmly shut. "Josh? Is it too bright for you....?"

I nodded fervently, then whimpered involuntarily as it made my headache protest.

The lights in Center rooms have three settings: Off, which had been the case when the boy came in, and high, which Karen had set the lights to when she entered. It was then set to the medium state, and I opened my eyes a crack.

"There, Josh. I'm so sorry, I didn't know..." I found myself with my forearms over her shoulder and nuzzled her affectionately.

"Um." The boy's voice sounded hollow and small. "S-sorry for just barging in and all, but there was an open bunk, and..."

"It's fine," said Karen, rocking back and forth gently.

"Uh... I'm Noah," he continued after a moment. "Noah Maxwell."

"Karen Ashlocke," said Karen, and I tried to tell her that she didn't need to be so clipped with the boy, but of course she didn't understand.

"Ashlocke?" Noah's voice was filled with wonder. "You mean…you know Mr. Ashlocke? Raymond? The Breeder?"

"He prefers to be called Ren, but yeah, he's my dad…" Karen's voice had taken on a surprised note. "Er… your leg…?"

"He's famous!" continued Noah excitedly. "He's one of the most famous Breeders in the country, you're so lucky!"

I was beginning to think that my earlier estimate of his age was wrong. The way he was exciting himself pointed toward younger—the bare minimum age to become a Trainer, ten. In any case, I was glad he'd ignored (or just not heard) Karen's question. I was surprised at her lack of subtlety. Though I had to admit I was curious about Noah's bum leg as much as she, I knew I, had I been able to, would have had the sense not to bring it up until he was ready to talk about it.

"Do you like Pokémon too?" Noah asked.

It was a routine question, and, to any other person, a trivial and redundant one. Who would have become a Trainer with a dislike of Pokémon? But what would have been a redundant question to others made Karen hesitate—I could feel her stiffen, and heard her breath catch.

"Y-yes." The answer, when she finally gave it, was forced. Noah seemed to sense this: his stream of chatter and questions ceased. There was silence for a moment as Karen sat down on the lower bunk and set me down near the wall, where the upper bunk's shadow shielded me from the overhead light. "Um. I'm sorry; I don't mean to appear mean or anything like that…"

"You found a strange person in the room and your Chikorita was screaming," Noah said, trying to justify her actions. "I don't blame you." Through the gaps in the ladder at the back of the bed I saw him shift slightly, pulling the bad leg up over his other knee. He sighed, and after waiting a moment for Karen to respond, said in a forlorn voice, "I can leave if you want."

"What? No, no, don't think like that!" Karen seemed flustered. "I don't want to impose—"

Noah's head snapped up, and another mood seemed to hit him; from curious child to mature counselor to lost little boy to bitter cripple. "Trying to take pity on me?"

"What… No!" Karen seemed to be getting angry. "If you'd stop jumping to conclusions…"

Noah sagged in his chair. "I'm sorry." When Karen looked at him, wondering what he was apologizing for, he continued, "…For exploding like that, I mean. I set out on this journey so people would see more than a boy with a dead leg. I didn't want people pitying me. That's my goal—to be the best, so people don't look down on me. So they don't think I'm constantly in need of help, or that I can do less than others." He sighed. "I guess sometimes I forget that I can't get there in one step."

Slowly, so as to keep my head intact and the room from spiraling, I pulled myself up onto the closest rung of the ladder and looked at him. He noticed; he caught his breath, apparently about to say something, but then began to stare back at me. "You've got a very handsome Chikorita."

'_Thanks,_' I said quietly, and Karen did the same.

"I wonder if you'd like mine?"

"Oh, do you have a Chikorita too?" Karen asked.

"Yeah, she's—" Noah seemed to make a grab for his belt, but the movement lost motivation halfway through and he ended up crossing his arms to avoid looking like an idiot. "Um… She's…out there."

"What happened?"

Noah hesitated. "Er, Sprout Tower."

"Ah," said Karen. I tried a weak smile, but gave up halfway through and slunk back into the shadows underneath the second bunk.

"We know what that's like, don't we, Josh?" laughed Karen as she gingerly stroked my leaf. The simple, gentle touch seemed to make my headache vanish, and I pushed myself into her hand instinctively, tired of the pain.

"Josh?" Noah repeated my name as though he'd misheard. "That's… kind of a weird name for a Chikorita." He didn't say it in an insulting manner—indeed, it was largely an in-passing comment; but I shot a glare at him and Karen made a small "hmph" noise. "Er… Nothing wrong with it, I-I mean, just…" He trailed off. He had struck me several times now as an impulsive person who spoke before he acted. "C-can I ask why you…?" He didn't finish the question, and Karendidn't give him an answer. The motion of her hand on my leaf had become robotic, and I figured her gaze had to be stony. "Never mind."

Tension. God, but there was tension in the room. I stared back and forth between Karen's impassive (just ever-so-slightly angry) face and Noah's terrified one. Gathering my legs under myself, I stepped out toward the corner of the bunk, so as to be between Karen and Noah.

'_Calm down,_' I told them with all the dignity I could muster, and swung my leaf in a wide arc.

Both Karen and Noah inhaled; both held the breath for several seconds; then, exhaling simultaneously, they both relaxed onto their respective supporting surfaces: Karen fell backwards onto the lower bunk of the bed, and Noah settled even deeper into the chair.

'_Wow,_' said Rina after a moment, spoiling the silence. '_That was pretty cool, Josh.'_

_'Chikorita thing,_' I told her, and moved back out of the light.

"I'm sorry," said both of the humans at the same time. Then Karen got up and leaned down toward her bag. "Who opened…? Rina, how did you figure that out? Clever girl."

Rina made a pleased sound again, and I saw the tips of her ears bob up and down as though she were bouncing happily in place.

There was a rustling noise and Karen came back up holding The Bottle. She leaned back against the wall, crossing her legs on the bunk; I climbed into her lap and began my supper.

Silence persisted. The humans had gone from tense to embarrassed, and neither seemed to want to be the first to resume the conversation.

"So… Where are you from, Noah?"

"Verdanturf Town, in Hoenn. My dad works for Devon Corp, a real businessman… He was kinda indignant when I told him I didn't want to journey in Hoenn. 'Why go anywhere monopolized by Silph?' he asked."

"Why did you?" asked Karen.

"Climate," said Noah; he hesitated a moment before continuing. "I mean, I've lived in Hoenn practically my whole life, I'm used to the semitropical climate, but Johto has… I don't know. Some kind of natural quality that Hoenn doesn't. The air isn't any cleaner—I'm from Verdanturf, I know clean air—the sky isn't any brighter, the grass isn't any greener… But everyone here seems to be just that much closer to nature."

"All the towns are named after plants," Karen acknowledged. "It's been that way as long as anyone can remember, too… No one's really sure why Johto's cities are named as they are, or why Kanto is so obsessed with color." I felt her shrug.

"There's also the Ruins of Alph," Noah added, practically as an afterthought, and both Karen and I stiffened. It was all I could do not to choke on the formula.

How much do you know about the Ruins of Alph? Nothing? Well, then I'll start at the beginning.

First off, no one knows where they came from. They've been in Johtofor all of its recorded history—some two thousand years, a little shy of Kanto's twenty-five hundred years. And in all two thousand years, no one—at least, no one in public knowledge—has ever found out who built them or why.

The Ruins jut up suddenly out of the ground some seven miles southwest of Violet City, massive stone caverns that look quite unobtrusive from the outside. The inside, however, is a different story. The entire zigzagging caverns are reportedly self-lit, containing countless statues of semi-rare to extinct Pokémon; and the walls are all covered with glyphs that look a lot like human writing. It's believed—though no one's ever been able to prove it—that human language emerged from these glyphs(1): twenty-eight have been found and recorded to date, twenty-six that bear surprising resemblance to the writing system used by humans, as well as one that looks like an exclamation point and one that looks like a question mark.

It was an enigma well into the twentieth century, and even during Gold's journey the Ruins were proving a mystery, and so little progress had been made that the Ruins had been half-converted into a tourist site. But some time into Gold's journey, strange things began to happen in the two caverns that could be accessed from the surface. Rumblings, earthquakes even, shook the entire area; holes appeared in the cavern roofs, and some feared for the structural integrity, though even now, to my knowledge, the Ruins are still standing. And… people began to get hurt. Most people evacuated the Ruins when the quakes started, but soon after, daring souls decided to reenter the caverns.

Those that came out were always gravely wounded, if they came out at all.

Needless to say, by my time the Ruins no longer hold a favorable reputation. The scientists, unable to enter the caverns, have given up on trying to solve it. It's no longer a tourist site: access isn't forbidden, but with rumors flying about as they have been for the last thirty-odd years, no one really wants to go near them.

Bear that in mind when you consider Karen's and my reactions.

"How much do you know about the Ruins of Alph?" Karen asked.

* * *

**Dominic**

He couldn't sleep.

It was rather ironic, considering he'd tried to get to bed early that night, but even as the clock on the hotel wall read 11:00 PM, Dominic Keaton was still wide awake.

He flung the covers back and rolled out of bed, taking a deep breath before standing up. On the chair, tail flame reduced to barely an ember, Dante jerked awake. With his return to consciousness, the Charmeleon's tail flame lit up the whole room in a flickering orange glow.

"S'nothin'," Dominic told him, walking toward the window. "Ye can get back tae sleep."

"_Char?"_

"Nothin'," repeated Keaton quickly. "Jes' that I cannae sleep yet."

"_Charmeleon."_

Dominic shrugged, taking in the view from the window. Violet City at nighttime unfolded in front of him: the streets practically bare but for the occasional bright red dot that was a car's taillight. Streetlights lit up the otherwise-black roads periodically, and from here he could see to the more-brightly lit downtown area. In between here and there, however, there was only the Pokémon Center and a patch of woodland untouched but for paved paths and lamps to light them, a sort of in-city forest.

Very suddenly, Dominic Keaton wondered what Pokémon called that park home. He cast a glance to Dante; the Charmeleon had almost fallen asleep again, but a quick, soft whistle from his Trainer brought him back to consciousness.

"_Char Charmeleon?"_

"Care for a bit of a midnight walk, Dante?"

"_Char."_ An affirmation.

"Gimme a sec, then, an' we'll go see what we can find."

"_Charmeleon Char?"_ asked Dante as the human changed out of his pajamas and into something fit for walking the streets. Despite the language barrier, Dominic knew what his Pokémon was asking.

"Well, it's better than lyin' here unable tae sleep; 'sides, you an' Venonat're the only Pokémon I got with me so far, so why no' try tae find some others, ye ken?"

"_Charmeleon." _Dante gestured in a wide fashion, as if to suggest the whole world.

"Well! All the Pokémon _aroun'_ Violet are weak and predictable. I'm thinkin' that maybe whatever's in that little park might be a bit more interestin', ye ken?"

Dominic pulled on a jacket and gestured at his Charmeleon. "C'mon, then. An' try not to light the whole city on fire, eh?"

Dante grinned and followed after his Trainer.

* * *

Dominic wasn't stupid enough to wander off of the paths at night. Though it was true that even entering something as unlit and unguarded as the park at night was rather risky, he knew for a certainty that rather less pleasant things than irritated, sleep-deprived Pokémon lay off of the paths. In any case, if Dante had gotten the least bit excited, he might have lost control of his tail flame, and the entire place would be engulfed in flames.

Dominic had no intentions of adding mass arson to his largely-clean record.

He had started on the side of the park closest to the hotel, and was very nearly outside the park on the Pokémon Center side when he spotted the Pokémon.

"Well, aren' you a surprise," he said quietly.

He didn't know for certain what kinds of Pokémoninhabited the woods, having seen few and caught none on the way through; however, he felt with reasonable certainty that this particular species wasn't native, despite its abundance almost everywhere else.

He stopped. Beside him, Dante froze, his tail flame shrinking down as much as it could while the Charmeleon was conscious. The Pokémon was watching the outside the park and—from what Dominic could see—trying to find something in the Pokémon Center across the street. He took a look for himself; the "hotel" wing of the Center was closest, and all the lights were dark. He wondered if the Pokémon had better eyesight, and could actually see something.

He rolled his eyes, chuckled softly to himself. What was he doing even considering that thought? Why would a wild Pokémon, even one that wasn't in its native environment, want to find anything in a Pokémon Center.

Dominic Keaton shifted his eyes to Dante, and the Charmeleon looked back. In the dark the human mouthed something; the Pokémon nodded, and crept forward, silent despite its relatively large size. It was nearly on top of the other Pokémon before it noticed. It spun around, letting out a cry of surprise.

"Gotcha!" whispered Dominic fiercely. Dante's claw whipped down and smashed the other's head between its ears; it collapsed, unmoving, and, almost lazily, Dominic threw a Ball at it.

There wasn't the slightest bit of resistance. The Ball didn't so much as twitch after engulfing the Pokémon in a blaze of red light; after a moment the Ball clicked and soared back to Dominic's hand.

He looked at it curiously, tossing it up and down in his hand.

"Tha's a mystery for the books," he told Dante. "Why in the world would there be one'a those in a place like this?"

"_Charmeleon."_

"An' what d'you suppose it was doin'?"

Dante shrugged. Dominic matched the shrug, put the Ball in one of his jacket pockets, and left the park, heading across the street to the Pokémon Center. Dante's method of knocking out a Pokémon was quite painless, at least until the Pokémon woke up.

Dominic Keaton wanted to make sure that his new Pikachu (2) wouldn't suffer any permanent brain damage.

* * *

(1) Glyphs: Only Gold, Red, and the Professors Oak, Elm, Rowan Jr., and his successor in Sinnoh, Rowan III, know of the existence of Unown. To the general public their existence has been kept secret, though space has been allotted them in the Johto, Sinnoh, and National-class Pokédices (index plural becomes indices; therefore Pokédex plural becomes Pokédices); however, to avoid confusion, their index number is occupied by the next sequential Pokémon until an Unown is actually scanned by the device.

(2) Pikachu: (**SPOILERS**: DO NOT READ THE FOLLOWING NOTE UNLESS YOU HAVE ALREADY READ THE OTHER CHAPTERS; NOR SHOULD YOU READ IT IF YOU SIMPLY DON'T LIKE SPOILERS. Should you choose the read this, I am not responsible for spoiling anything: I've given you ample warning. If you wish to move to another chapter, please use the box at the top of the page rather than the bottom):

* * *

I would like to take the chance to say that only one Pikachu of importance has been introduced as of yet in the story. If you couldn't figure it out, the Pikachu here and that Pikachu are one and the same, though I'd hoped that would be obvious. The Pikachu in question is a she, and her name starts with a C.


	10. Pearl

A/N: For those of you who don't know--likely all of you who read this--chapter 9 has been revised slightly, and there are two changes of importance that affect the story forthwith:  
-Noah's last name has been changed from Gregory to Maxwell  
-Dominic's other Pokémon, formerly a Scyther, is now a Venonat

* * *

**Chapter X - Pearl**

**Joshua**

I awoke to the sound of someone knocking on the door. Apparently it didn't wake anyone else up, because even though I twitched in Karen's arms upon waking, she didn't move a muscle, and her breathing—which sounded so slow and heavy now compared to mine—didn't change. On the upper bunk, I thought I heard Noah shift; but his breathing stayed the same as well.

The knock came again, followed by a muffled "Excuse me?"

I almost laughed. If the Nurse herself was calling on us than we must have overslept. I didn't bother to look at the clock on table on the other side of the room—I had found out almost immediately that I no longer possessed the ability to read, not even numbers. Despite the fact that I could picture the letters perfectly in my mind's eye, whenever I looked at something with text on it, it became jumbled and blurry. I wondered if the rebirth process resulted in dyslexia.

The door cracked open a bit, and the Nurse with rose-colored hair peeked inside. I met her gaze, putting on an innocent, slightly ruffled "why'd-you-wake-me-up" expression.

"Sorry, little guy," she whispered to me, then another "Excuse me," more forcefully, to the humans.

I heard Noah take a deep breath and shift. The bunk above sagged slightly, so he must have sat up.

"Noah Maxwell?"

"S'me," came Noah's voice tiredly.

"Your Chikorita is ready to be discharged. If you'd come to pick her up…?"

"Right," said Noah, and his weight shifted even more. With his slow, awkward, one-legged gait he climbed down the ladder to the ground.

"After a moment," the Nurse added. "There's no hurry."

"No, I'll come," said Noah, grabbing his walking stick and trying to tame his hair, which I noticed had gone in several directions in the night. He cast a glimpse at Karen and I as he stepped past, then slowed. "Hey, Josh, you want to come?"

"_Chiko?"_

"I think she'll be fine."

"_Chiko,_" I agreed, disentangling myself from my cousin's arms. She had a strange habit of holding onto me as she slept; I wondered if she was used to stuffed Pokémon. Shrugging the matter away, I dropped to the ground beside him.

Noah smiled. "I think you'll like her." With another nod to the Nurse, he began to follow her down the hall to the hospital wing. I cast one last glance at Karen, who seemed not to have noticed my disappearance, and followed.

It couldn't have been past eight o'clock. We passed several open windows, and the air carried a fresh, morning-like feel. It invigorated me just feeling it. I clicked down the hallway next to Noah's uneven gait, both of us trailing behind the Nurse. Noah wasn't talking—his gaze was fixed on the back of the Nurse's head, and I figured he had to be impatiently waiting to see his Chikorita again. I had nothing to say to the human, really, nor would I have been able to in any case. Unlike Noah's focus, however, my thoughts kept wandering.

What made Noah so sure I would like his Chikorita? He'd called her "she" several times in passing, but that wouldn't matter to me. Why should I care for gender? In any case, even if I weren't a human in a Chikorita body, I was scarcely two weeks old. Love wasn't going to be a big deal.

The tile pattern shifted from diamonds to plain white as we changed wings. What is it with hospitals and their obsession with the color white? I shook my head, not wanting to go off on another tangent.

Noah… I still wasn't sure what to make of him. He hadn't told us any of what had happened to his leg, if indeed anything had happened, per se; indeed, aside from telling us where he was from the boy had said very little about himself. That's not to say I didn't trust him—I'm not such a paranoid person as to not trust people simply for the sake of not knowing everything about them, especially a person like Noah, who may have had good reason not to talk about himself. But I couldn't help but be a little curious.

The Nurse took a left into one of the rooms, and Noah and I followed. From my vantage point, eyes about two feet off of the floor, I could see nothing but the tip of another Chikorita's leaf.

"Pearl," said Noah, leaning forward, and I lost sight of the other Pokémon. "I missed you, too; but it's okay now, I promise. Hey," he said, separating, "you know what? I met a friend last night, someone I think you'd like. Pearl, say hi to Josh."

The other Chikorita dropped down to the floor, smiled at me, and said '_Hi._'

'_H…hi,'_ I responded after a moment. I realized that this was one of the prettiest Pokémon I'd ever seen, and also one of the rarest, but mostly the prettiest. She stood a little shorter than I did, but her leaf was larger, and other than that the only difference was her eyes.

Normal Chikorita have red eyes; those who study them say that it may be come kind of evolutionary adaptation, but to what end they aren't sure. I had thought Chikorita to be cute with their red eyes; but then I'd never met Pearl.

Her eyes were turquoise. And they were really, really deep, like I could fall into them and never touch the bottom.

I began to reconsider what I'd thought about love not being an issue.

I must have stared, hardly blinking, for well past twenty seconds. Finally Pearl giggled, walked up to me, and used one of her forefeet to close my mouth. I hadn't been aware it was open.

'_Sorry,'_ I said, embarrassed. '_I didn't mean to…'_

'_Everyone does,_' she admitted, still smiling. '_I always wondered why people liked my eyes so much. I guess they're kinda different from yours, huh?'_

'_A…a little,' _I said sheepishly. Pearl giggled again, turning back to Noah. '_I like him!'_

"Good to see you guys hit it off. What do you think, Josh? Was I right?" he asked, grinning.

I managed to nod. Pearl turned back to me, and I became lost in those beautiful eyes again. And from that point forward there's a big blank in my memory—the next thing I knew, I was back in Karen's room, and she was right where I'd left her.

**Mew**

I knew I'd lost the battle when my heart warmed to see Joshua so infatuated with Pearl. Not only was it adorable, it was funny… as well as intriguing.

Of all of the dozens (or so) souls that I'd recycled as Pokémon over the years, Joshua was one of the most adaptable. He was nary three weeks old, a point at which several reborns still endeavored to be human, but I saw little to none of that in him. He still seemed rather shell-shocked by the whole event, though I doubt he even realized it himself, but it seemed to me that he was—somehow—more Pokémon than human. Perhaps he still thought of himself that way, but he was adapting far more quickly than almost any other soul I'd ever dealt with.

As he walked back to Karen's room, eyes glazed over as though in a daze, I nodded, somewhat disappointed, but more than a little relieved.

_You can't hold a grudge. It's not in your character,_ admonished the voice of my long-gone teacher.

_Admit you were in the wrong, and let him get on with his life,_ added Myst's, though I was sure it was just my imagination.

_There will be enough hardship later,_ continued the first voice.

_Remember your promise,_ came Myst's voice firmly.

I nodded again, resigned. As I began to follow the young man in the Chikorita's body, out of the Pokémon Center and back into town proper, I realized I couldn't even remember what had made me mad at him in the first place.

**Joshua**

Noah was still with us, though that was only because the way back south was also west—in the direction of the Gym, which Noah had yet to challenge.

"Er…," Karen began after Noah had declared his intent to challenge Falkner. "I went in with two Pokémon, and Joshua was stronger than Pearl is now, and _I _barely won."

This got his attention: the crippled boy slowed to a stop, leaning on his walking stick. The hopeful light in his eyes was replaced by doubt, and while I felt a momentary pang of pity for him, I knew that Karen's bluntness was only honesty.

"I haven't had any luck with any other Pokémon," Noah said, sighing. "I landed in Goldenrod after flying from Rustboro, and have run into any number of wild Pokémon. Nothing."

Pearl wasn't around—she was in her PokéBall—so I wasn't sure what her reaction was; but to me it sounded like he was ungrateful to her, and it made me angry.

"Don't get me wrong," he continued, seeing my expression. "It's not like I think Pearl's weak… I just have bad luck."

What happened next surprised me, though with the 20/20 vision of hindsight I suppose I shouldn't have been.

"I'm not in any real hurry," said Karen. "How about I help you catch one? Er…if you like."

Noah looked surprised. "Woud…would you?"

* * *

The place was silent.

Route 31 is a very small path that many have argued doesn't deserve its own designation. It stretches east and west for the span of about a mile, connected to Violet's eastern gates on the western side and to the north-southbound Route 30 on the eastern. There are very few Trainers, and only slightly more numerous wild Pokémon. It connects to the Dark Cave to the east, which (provided you have a Pokémon that can use Flash) allows for a shortcut to and from Route 45 south of Blackthorn, provided you also have a Pokémon that can Rock Climb(1).

There were no Trainers around now, and I couldn't hear any Pokémon in the grass. Not that it bothered me, because there was plenty of sun and Pearl was nearby.

I shook myself violently a moment later, realizing how complacently I'd thought that. It was as if I were settling into becoming a Pokémon. I wasn't, and had no intention of doing so: I was human, through and through, even though Mew had told me that I couldn't be one again. I couldn't stop hoping.

"Josh?" Karen picked me up, and her voice spoiled the silence. "You alright?"

_No_, I wanted to tell her. _No, I'm not alright. I'm your cousin, whom you think you killed, stuck in the body of a Chikorita, and you don't even know I'm here!_ I simply sighed, sagging into her arms.

"Is…it getting too bright for you again?"

That reminded me of Mew's bane, and that I hadn't felt sick at all since I'd met Pearl. As soon as I thought of the pink feline, however, a shiver ran down my back and I realized, with some unidentifiable Pokémon sense, that the legendary was nearby.

I shook my head absently, and put my eyes back on Noah—_not_ Pearl—as he continued to limp through the grass in an attempt to find a wild Pokémon. He was wasting his time: there were none about. Maybe he was right—maybe he did have bad luck.

I cast a glance about as well as I could, but could catch no sign of Mew. I wasn't surprised; but I couldn't shake the feeling that he was—

"Joshua."

…watching me.

I was in the void again, back in some semblance of my human body, and in front of me was Mew.

"Don't worry," he said before I could utter a word. "You just fell asleep in your Trainer's arms. I would, too, if I was watching somebody look for something that wasn't there."

"Where _are _all the wild Pokémon?" I asked in spite of myself.

"Elsewhere. It's not my doing, it's one of the Sprites, probably Azelf, don't think I enjoy torturing people…"

"You don't seem to have any problem torturing reborns, though. When you remember."

Mew stirred restlessly, but his eyes never left the floor (or whatever was below us). "I can't hold a grudge against you. I'm not the kind of Pokémon to hold grudges. I just…get kinda impulsive sometimes, you know?" He sighed. "Besides, I was kinda breaking a promise by doing anything to you… Making you sick wasn't keeping you safe…"

"Who…?" Was this the same promise he'd mentioned before?

He pressed his forepaws together, rubbed his muzzle slightly, and said "M'sarrie."

"What?" I asked, leaning forward.

"…I'm…sorry. I got ahead of myself. It's just that I don't like people touching my tail, you know? It's… one of those things you just don't like, what do you call them?"

"Um, pet peeves?"

"Yeah," he said. "Those." He sighed again. "I guess I deserved it, anyway, dancing circles around you as I was."

He floated past me, and I turned, instinctually keeping my eyes on him. He laughed hollowly, bitterly, apparently noticing. "There you go. Don't trust Mew, he's a trickster…

"Your buddy Noah's not going to find any Pokémon here, Joshua. But because I feel like I owe you something, get him to come to Route 32, east of the Pokémon Center in front of Union Cave. There'll be a Pokémon there, and Noah will be able to catch it."

"How does a Pokémon for Noah equal repaying me?"

Mew turned toward me, eyes unreadable. "I would think a confidant is ample repayment."

"A…confidant?"

But just for an instant a mischievous gleam had come back into Mew's eyes, and he vanished, and I dropped back into real sleep. It would only have been five minutes or so, once I woke up, but Noah would have already given up hope. Now all I had to do was get them to follow me south.

**Nathaniel**

It was very nearly silent.

Perhaps it was the fact that their wings were very like clouds, gliding silently across the sky, but the flock of Altaria and Swablu made next-to-no noise, aside from the displacement of air, as they flew back south toward Hoenn.

Caught in the middle, surrounded on all sides, Nathan nevertheless did his best to escape. He was one Swablu in a flock of dozens, and he couldn't stand it. The same mentality that had driven him to do what he had done with his human life—the desire to stand out, to not just be one of a crowd—was now driving him to get away. That, and the fact that he had been dumped into a new life without so much as a by-your-leave, and he had no patience with the simple-minded Swablu nor the honor-bound Altaria.

The flock banked left, and just for a moment there was a hole in the blue-and-white mass beneath him. More like a Fearow than a Swablu, he dove out and away.

'_Cumulus, where are you going?'_

'_Hey! Come back!'_

'_Cumulus!'_

Nathan ignored their protests, still diving toward the land beneath him. They had started out in the unclaimed lands north of Johto, and he doubted they had gotten beyond that first region, because they hadn't reached the sea yet. He thought he saw large, ancient-looking buildings, signs of a city, the unmistakable red roof of a Pokémon Center. He didn't know where he was going; all he knew was that he had to get away, had to stand out, had to find another person like him.

He hoped, he prayed, that he wasn't the only one. The only human trapped in the body of a Pokémon. It was infuriating, and worst of all no one understood or believed him when he told them.

Silently—if there was one thing he had mastered about being a Swablu, it was flying—he landed in one of a number of trees a little ways off from the Pokémon Center. Exhausted, Nathan fell asleep there, a bright blue-and-white spot against the green and brown of the tree.

* * *

(1)Rock Climb: Until recently this was impossible due to Sinnoh's stubborn no-outside-trade and HM-trade laws, which were recently lifted with respect to Johto only (though it is possible to bring Sinnoh-HM Pokémon into Kanto by taking the unofficial entry via the lake east of New Bark).

Nathaniel Cruse—Nathan—was submitted by srgeman, and was introduced in this chapter to give me a little more writing leeway.

An apology for this chapter being so short (on average, about a whole two thousand words shorter than my previous few chapters)—but I'm done with school, and provided I can find enough free time around my summer schedule, I will likely update more often. I just needed to get back into the mood.

Until next time.


	11. As a Foul Magikarp

A/N: Another long break, I'm sorry, but I've been busy. I've already got plans for at least the next chapter, however, and with any luck will have that done shortly.

I'd like to thank Glacial Eidolon for taking the time to beta-read this particular chapter not once but three times, each time pointing out places in need of revision; I'd also like to thank him for suggesting the chapter title—though I swear, Glacial, I'll try not to depend so heavily upon your suggestions from now on.

Disclaimer: I own only certain things in this story—Karen Ashlocke, Noah Maxwell, and Joshua Card among them. However, I do not claim to own or be affiliated with Nintendo or GameFreak, nor do I possess any of the rights to the Pokémon franchise. Also, though they appear in my story, I do not own any of the characters submitted by readers (Nathan and Rina).

Onward.

**Chapter XI – As a Foul Magikarp**

"What _is_ it, Josh?"

'_Yeah, Josh, your explanation wasn't very clear…'_

'_Where are we going…?'_

Nathan jerked awake. His body balanced for him, though there was an unsettling moment when a breeze blew by and he spread his wings instinctively; it was a stupid move, he reflected later, because the sudden movement would have—should have—made anyone looking at the tree do a double take; though he supposed better an imagined movement in a tree than a definite sighting when he fell out.

In the silence after the breeze, the Swablu reborn listened. Were there really voices, or had they been part of the unsettling dream he'd been having?

"Hey, a Pokémon Center." Female, human; he hazarded a guess around mid-to-late teens. "Funny… I never realized there was a Pokémon Center here."

'_Never, huh?'_ remarked a Pokémon voice—a Chikorita, if Nathan had heard the syllables correctly, and male; there was a certain quality to it that he couldn't quite identify, however, that made his voice sounded at once young and…not so young. '_Funny choice of words, since you've only been through here once.'_

'_Josh, that wasn't nice,_' chided another Chikorita—female. '_But you still haven't answered our question.'_

'_Yeah!'_ Another female. Was it a…Sentret? Nathan had never studied Johto's Pokémon as well as he had Sinnoh's. '_I mean, if it made so little sense to us, how'd you get Karen to come along?'_

"Well, that's a good a place to rest as any…," continued the female human. "Sorry for dragging you all the way out here, Noah."

"We're closer to the Ruins, though." Another human—male, and younger than the girl. "I won't complain too much…as long as I can get back to challenge Falkner."

Falkner? A Johtoshi Gym Leader, if Nathan recalled. The _Other_ Flying Gym-Leader, people called him. Nathan now knew exactly where he was.

There was a pause after Noah mentioned the Ruins, as though no one else wanted to bring them up. Nathan moved to the side a little as the sound of the humans walking continued, and then the group came into view.

"Well, we can stop for lunch and then head back. I'm sorry you're having such rotten luck, Noah." This was the female, thin and slightly pale, as though she were reclusive; straight black hair fell to her shoulders, and Nathan could see the concern in her blue eyes as she stared at the boy.

"No… It isn't your fault. You go on inside, I want to stay out here for a bit." Nathan's gaze was caught and held by the boy. Young—not older than thirteen—with unruly brownish hair and glasses. He was limping, and when the two stopped near the Pokémon Center Nathan saw him lean rather heavily on the walking stick he carried in his right hand.

_What happened to him?_ he wondered.

'_Hey, can I stay with you?'_ The first Chikorita, standing by the girl's feet.

"Looks like Josh wants to stay, too," said the girl.

"He can, it's alright." Josh? The name of the first Chikorita, then—the male. Why "Josh"? Nathan had always considered giving such obviously human names to Pokémon rather off-putting.

The girl took a bit of an uneven breath, as though unsure about leaving Josh behind. Then, quietly, she said "Alright… See you inside. Come on, Rina." She began to walk away from the boy; the Chikorita that had been closest to her stayed put, while the other—the female—as well as the Sentret who'd remained mostly silent followed her. She looked back, surprised to see the other Grass-type following. "Oh, you too, Pearl? Don't you want to stay with your Trainer?"

'_He'll be okay.'_

"It's fine," said Noah. His gaze was wandering toward the grove Nathan was hiding in, and the Swablu reborn was glad he'd chosen to hide in an Oran tree. He ought to have flown off, he knew… But there was something about the boy, an unending curiosity he could not ignore.

_What happened to you…?_

**Joshua**

Though I wasn't sure what had prompted Noah to want to stay outside, I didn't question it. I was glad to have the chance to look for the "confidant" Mew had promised me. It had taken every bit of wit I possessed, not to mention a ton of sitting and staring, making plaintive noises, and eventually (after I'd gotten frustrated) nudging my cousin in the right direction to get Karen to head back south, and to bring Noah along.

It was a little past noon, judging by the sun that I could see through the clouds. It was starting to cloud over, heavily, and another rainstorm seemed likely.

There were tables, complete with PokéBall-decaled umbrellas, set in regular intervals in front of the Center. I thought Noah would shuffle toward one of those, but to my surprise he walked the other way, toward a small clump of trees. Not wanting to be left alone, I followed.

Of the five trees in the little grove, one was too young to bear fruit; the others were already shining green with leaves, and I spotted Pecha, Sitrus, and Oran Berries. It was in front of one of the Oran trees that Noah stopped, staring up into its branches.

'_What's up, Noah?_'

He didn't answer, scrutinizing the tree from behind his glasses. I backed up a few feet, so as to get the whole tree within my field of vision, and tried to spy what had nabbed the crippled boy's focus.

"There," said Noah eventually, and one of the berries that I had looked over twitched. I looked back at it, realizing that it looked just a tad brighter than the other berries; then the Swablu unfurled its wings, and I saw it for what it was.

"Don't," said Noah gently, but with a desperate air. "I haven't seen a Swablu in ages… I never thought I'd see one in Johto…"

I could see the tiny bird Pokémon's eyes scrutinizing the boy, but so far it seemed to be ignoring me. It seemed to consider for a moment, then dropped out of the tree, flapping its cotton-like wings silently, and fluttered up to land on Noah's walking stick; from there, when Noah offered his hand, it flew down to his wrist.

'_What happened to you?_' it asked, and I heard something in its—his—voice that I'd heard before, only I couldn't quite place it. The Swablu spoke with…well, how can I describe it? It sounded like one and a half voices, if that makes any sense. The voice of the bird was high-pitched and melodious, the syllables pouring out like a gentle rain shower; but there was an echo of sorts to it, and in the part of my mind that still interpreted what Pokémon said and put it in English, I heard the voice of a man.

"Whoa," said Noah, mouth opened in surprise at the bird's boldness. But it didn't surprise me—if what I thought was true, then the instant the Swablu turned towards me… "You're awfully calm." When the Swablu tilted his head, its expression grave, it got a smile from Noah. "You're a pretty bird, too, aren't you?"

I thought I saw irritation flash in the bird's eyes for a moment, but it was gone just as fast as it had come. With a lightning fast twitch of his head, the Swablu looked away from Noah and at me.

_The sound of tires screeching, and people screaming. He sprinted, dropping whatever he'd had in his hands, pushed a dumbstruck man out of his path, and made a flying leap for the woman, paralyzed by fear in the middle of the street. The force of his push almost made her fall, but she apparently regained sense at the last moment, and turned the stumble into a sprint of her own. He hit the ground, hard, winded, his dark hair falling into his eyes. He made to push himself back to his feet, though he knew in his gut that there was no point—it was over. There was the sound of a truck horn blaring, and he realized that it had been blaring for the last five seconds, and that he had less than that to live. At least he'd done the right thing._

…

"Josh!?"

"Karen, I-I'm…"

"You said he'd be fine!"

"He _is_, he's just lost consciousness…"

"What did you _do_ to him, Noah!?"

'_Stop shouting,_' I muttered weakly.

"I didn't…"

'_Stop it!'_

"Josh?" I was in her arms, I realized. What had happened? I'd seen the Swablu's…. the _reborn's_ instant of death, and then… "Josh, you're okay!"

'_Stop…squeezing!' _I gasped, and she did so. I drew a breath, and opened my eyes as Karen took me off of her shoulder. We were inside the Center, it looked like; the lobby, and aside from a young man sleeping on the other side of the room there was no one else around.

"You sure you're alright?"

'_Aren't you being just a bit overprotective?' _I asked. '_It's usually the Pokémon's job to protect the human, not the other way around…'_

She gave me another crushing hug, murmuring about how worried she was, and then set me down. I looked up, to see that she was delivering a death glare to the back of Noah's head.

I pulled on her pant leg, and she looked down again.

'_Don't be mad at him,'_ I told her, gesturing toward Noah to make my point. '_He didn't do anything. It was that Swablu's fault.'_

'_Mine?' _came a new voice; I froze, and the Chikorita in me tried to curl up into a small green ball. It was the Swablu—more importantly, my mind registered, it was a Flying Pokémon. I backed away as the bright blue bird landed in front of me, head cocked. '_I could say what happened to me was your fault, little Chikorita._'

'_What… happened?'_

'_I fainted. So did you. I am assuming it had something to do with those visions, and since I've never had one of those in my life until I set my eyes on you, I want to know what you did.'_

"Looks like they're getting to know each other," said Noah somewhere above us.

'_Me? I, myself, did nothing. It's…because of what I am. And what you are.'_

'_Cut the crap,_' said the Swablu shortly, his face contorting into an angry expression that looked wrong on a Swablu's face.

'_You…'_ I took a breath. '_You're human, aren't you?'_

He barely twitched, but I could tell he was shaken by my abruptness. '_Then the visions…?'_

'_When two reborn humans lock eyes, the one sees how the other dies, and vice versa._'

He stared at me for a moment, beady black eyes searching—it felt like he was looking into my soul, and I shivered.

'_You too?'_ he asked after a moment. I nodded. '_…I've…been scared of cars ever since,_' he admitted, and I told him the same.

'_It explains why we both fainted._'

He nodded, then looked back up toward Noah. '_What…happened to him?'_

'_You asked that before,_' I observed. '_I don't know, myself, but why are you so curious?'_

He didn't answer; and when he next spoke it was as though he'd never heard my question. '_I might have to go with you. This may be the chance I've been waiting for… A chance to make a difference.'_

He spread his wings, ready to flutter back up to Noah, but I stopped him with my next question. '_Hey—your name! What's your name?'_

He looked back at me.

'_She calls me Josh, but really I'm Joshua Card. Don't ask why the names are similar, I'll explain it later. But… who are you?'_

His eyes flicked from side to side again, the serious expression still alien on his too-round face. '_…My flock called me Cumulus. My name is Nathan… Nathan Cruse.'_

* * *

They stared each other down so fiercely I was afraid the air between them would catch fire.

There was no enmity in Rina's gaze—rather an acute curiosity fueled by instinct. Nathan's was impassive, cool, but I could tell he was sizing the Sentret up. Said Sentret was standing on the arm of the chair in the Violet City Center lobby; Nathan was sitting on Noah's hand as the human stroked at him, in theory to calm him down, though I doubted the Swablu reborn felt a thing.

'_You're still young,_' observed Rina.

'_Your point?_' Nathan muttered, flicking his wings in a feasible impression of a human shrugging.

'_I like taking care of young Pokémon,'_ said Rina, smiling.

Nathan grunted—don't ask me how, Swablu aren't really built to grunt—and fluffled his wings again. '_What if I said I don't like depending on others?'_

'_I'd take care of you anyway,_' declared Rina stubbornly, but the joy was gone from her gaze. Now there was real tension between the two. I backed away, but stopped as soon as I felt I'd run into something else. I turned around to see Pearl.

'_Oh—uh, sorry,_' I said. '_I…I didn't know you were there…'_

'_What is he?' _she asked, her eyes fixed on Nathan.

'_He's…'_ I paused. Did she expect me to know? I _was_ older than her, according to Karen, but not by more than a day or two. How would she react if I told her I knew?

'_What?_' asked Pearl. '_He's what?'_

'_A… I d-don't know._ _I've never seen a Pokémon like that before.'_

The gaze Pearl sent my direction lasted perhaps half a second longer than it should have. Then she trotted past me and up toward Nathan.

'_Excuse me?'_

'_Butt out,_' said Nathan shortly, gaze still fixed on Rina.

'_What?'_ asked Pearl quietly, stiffening.

'_Watch it, N…'_ Dare I use his real name? '_Watch it, buddy, or we'll triple-team you._'

'_You wouldn't dare,_' said Nathan, tone of voice suggesting he knew very well that we wouldn't indeed. '_Besides, I can take all of you on and win._'

"Hey, come on, guys," said Noah, finally noticing the death glares the three of us were directing at his newest Pokémon. "He's just a Swablu."

Ah… Right. Humans and Pokémon didn't usually understand each other very well.

Rina, looking rather disappointed, finally backed down. '_If you really don't want my help… Okay._'

Nathan let out a cocky laugh—that sounded as though it were nothing more than a thoughtful chirp. Rina flinched, Pearl looked confused, and I started growling.

"Josh!" snapped Karen, and I started guiltily. When had she returned? She'd gone to ensure another room for later that night—it was getting on toward three or three thirty, or so I imagined, and if Noah planned on battling Falkner today then it would have been nearly pointless to think about setting out that night.

My cousin picked me up, rather more roughly than she usually did, and stared at me with a stern face that I'd never seen on her face before, at least when she was looking at a Pokémon.

"You shouldn't growl like that at other Pokémon."

'_You shouldn't reprimand me when you don't know why I'm growling._' Why did I argue? I honestly don't know. I suppose it was me taking out my frustration that Nathan so easily shrugged off.

"You're usually so nice… Why start being rude now? That's just a Swablu, Josh, and there's almost nothing on the planet gentler than a Swablu."

Here Nathan told Karen to do something anatomically impossible. With a grunt of frustration, I tried to fight my way out of Karen's arms—how dare he insult her like that!? But of course everyone misunderstood, and before I knew for sure what was happening everything faded to gray and… I couldn't remember why I'd been so angry…

* * *

**Pearl (1)**

"What do you think?" asked my Trainer quietly as he stroked my back with his gentle hands. "About my Swablu. I can't decide on a name."

'_Why can't you just call him by his real name?'_ He'd done that with me… Or, I guess, close enough. My mother had named me "Pearls-of-Dew", and Noah had called me Pearl. I was curious as to why Josh had his name… That didn't sound like a Chikorita name.

Now that I thought about it, there were several things that were different, never mind the color of our eyes. He seemed…mature. He couldn't have been any more than a few days older than me, but he seemed older. Not as mature as Mother, but…

I shook my head, not wanting to get off on another train of thought while my Trainer was asking me something.

"I bet you've got some good suggestions, don't you?" he asked. "Too bad I can't understand you…"

'_But…'_ I began, then sighed. '_I can't help. I'm sorry.'_

Noah set me down and grabbed his walking stick, setting both hands on it to pull himself up. He said something in swift Human to Karen, and exited the human building we were in.

He seemed nervous, and I wanted to help him, but I didn't know enough about what was bothering him. I nuzzled up to his leg, and he sent a smile down toward me before letting the Swablu back out of his metal berry. He barely cast me a glance before landing on Noah's hand.

"What to call you…?"

The Swablu said nothing, staring intently into my Trainer's eyes. It was only with Noah that he seemed relaxed, and also the only one of us—including Josh's Trainer and Rina—whom the Swablu hadn't insulted.

"You look so serious all the time. I guess there's nothing wrong with a melancholy bird… I've never seen a Swablu be anything less than downright cheerful, though. Every picture I've seen, happily singing away…"

'_What happened to you?'_ asked the bird. When he got no answer, he actually cast his gaze down at me. '_You're his Pokémon. Tell me—what happened to your Trainer?_'

'_What…happened?_' I asked, confused. What was he talking about? Nothing had ever "happened" to Noah… Had it?

'_His leg,_' insisted the Swablu shortly.

'_It's…always been like that,_' I told him. '_Ever since I met him._'

The Swablu ruffled his wings uncomfortably, but did not press the matter.

"A good name for a serious little bird," mused Noah. "Hmm…"

'_My name is Nathan._'

"How about Cumulus?"

The Swablu flinched, and cast a suspicious gaze at my Trainer. '_How did you…? No, you… Nathan, my name is __**Nathan**__…'_

"I like it," decided Noah.

'_I don't._'

"Let's go see if we can still get a battle with Falkner."

I trailed along behind him, and Nathan—Cumulus—sat fuming on his shoulder.

* * *

**Joshua**

"You again," grunted Falkner as he spied Karen. "I've already given you your badge, young Ashlocke."

We were back in the Gym's arena chamber. Hawk-lady the secretary had barely spared us a glance before letting us in. Noah, as calm as he'd seemed on the way, was terribly nervous. I sympathized with him; but more than that I sympathized with Pearl. I knew what was coming.

"I'm with him," my cousin insisted, and Noah grinned sheepishly.

The Gym Leader turned his piercing eyes to Noah. They settled for a moment on his right leg, let out a huff of sympathy, and nodded. "Right then. How many?"

"T-two."

"Huh!" scoffed Falkner. "Everyone's got two these days." He turned and shuffled to his end of the field. "Whenever you're ready, Master…"

"Uh? Oh, M-Maxwell. Noah Maxwell."

Pearl was released onto the field at the same time as Falkner's Pokémon. I let out a cry of fear and retreated into Karen's arms as soon as I saw it, and on the field I heard Pearl let out a gasp of pure terror. Falkner was taking no chances.

The Pokémon he'd let out onto the field was his Pidgeotto. This was not going to end well.

And end well it didn't. I'm not going to deceive you—they lost. But I suppose my victory had been miraculous enough. Pearl was decimated by the same Sand-Attack/Tackle combination that had done me in, and Nathan, while he showed some proficiency for combat—even attempting to launch into a Fury Attack--simply couldn't stand up to something twice his size.

Noah was standing at the edge of the arena with his hands holding so tightly onto his walking stick that his knuckles were white. Nathan was motionless except for his rapid breathing, trapped under the Pidgeotto's talon. The expression on his face—that I could make out from the bleachers—was one of fury.

"It's over," grunted Falkner. "Hah!" he added, turning to Karen. "See, girl? You got lucky. Pidgeotto." At his command, his Pokémon released Nathan and the Swablu remained where he was, limp on the ground. "That's a nice Swablu you've got, though, boy. Train him up and I might actually lose."

"Cumulus…" Noah murmured as he stepped into the arena to retrieve Nathan.

'_You…cocky bastard._' He was so weak I could barely hear the human part of his voice—to hear such words uttered in a glass-shattering soprano (albeit pianissimo) was almost funny. '_…I'll…get you for this…_' (2)

* * *

Noah got another free night at the Center, since his Pokémon were currently being taken care of. Karen had been refunded what she'd paid for him, but kept her own reservation, and while Pearl and Nathan… or _Cumulus_, as Noah wanted to call him… healed, we slept. Or, everyone but me slept.

I could hear the wind blowing outside, and though clouds still covered the sky there was no rain. Noah was tossing and turning in the bunk above us, and even Karen seemed less at ease. Rina was back in her place at the windowsill, and I was in my customary sleeping place in Karen's arms.

But I wasn't tired. Every time I tried to get back to sleep, Nathan's face popped into my head, insulting me, insulting Rina, insulting Pearl. It bothered me. I felt he had gotten some of his due earlier, getting his rear handed to him so cleanly, but…

'_Josh?_' It was Rina. I shifted positions slightly, and could make out her eyes, shining slightly in the black of her silhouette. '_Still awake?'_

'_It's… Cumulus. He bothers me.'_

'_Me too,_' said the Sentret, and I thought I saw her ears droop. '_I guess self-sufficiency isn't a bad thing, but he doesn't have to be so mean to everyone._'

'_Exactly,_' I crowed—in a soft whisper. '_He thinks he's better than everyone else…_' Though I supposed technically he was, since the moves he'd used today were all learned by Swablu at least over level 10.

Noah sighed, and I heard him turn over. Karen's grip on me had relaxed, and I dropped to the floor as quietly as I could.

'_Where are you going?_' asked Rina.

I was silent for a moment. Along with Nathan's ego, the image of Pearl as I'd seen her after the battle—scratched and bruised, in so much pain that even unconscious she was crying—had also stayed in my mind's eye, and I'd finally decided I couldn't wait any more. '_I've…got to check on Pearl._'

'_But Josh, she's sleeping. Like you should be._'

'_What about you?_' Why had she excluded herself?

'_I'm nocturnal, mostly. I usually just rest during the night, I don't sleep._'

I sighed. '_Rina, please. I… I know this sounds stupid, but… I _have_ to check on her._'

**The Listener**

Joshua pauses here, and sends a glance toward the Listener. '_I know what you're thinking. No, I wasn't infatuated, and no, I wasn't in love with her at that point._'

The Listener seems taken aback, as though it had never made any such assumptions.

'_I…just felt responsible, you know? I guess I didn't have any reason to be, but… I knew she wasn't as strong as I was, but did I offer her any help? Did I tell her anything about what to expect? No. I felt guilty. I wanted to make sure my lack of attention wouldn't leave any lasting marks._'

**Joshua**

'_Will you come with me?_' I asked Rina after a moment.

'_Me? Why me?_'

'_W…well, you were so good at opening Karen's bag yesterday, and I can't reach the door handles…_'

'_Oh._' The Sentret dropped down to the floor herself and padded over toward me. '_I don't know how to open them, though._'

'_I… I do. I've, uh, seen Karen do it plenty of times, I just can't reach the knob._' That was a halfway decent lie, as spur-of-the-moment as it was.

'_Knob?_'

'_Well, look…_.'

* * *

Rina grasped the theory, and proved to be as good at it as I'd hoped. We had snuck from the room without disturbing the humans, and, after a considerable amount of time spent wandering the hospital wing, found Pearl's room—fortunately the same one as last time. Rina, despite my saying otherwise, insisted that she wait outside (_'What if someone comes? We aren't supposed to be here…'_).

The room was dark, but I could see well enough from the small light emanating from the street lamp outside. I climbed up onto a chair, and thence to the spinning stool that all doctor's offices have, and thence to the counter.

Pearl, as Rina had assumed, was sleeping, eyes still squeezed shut in agony. The injuries were serious, the nurse had said, not something a trip on the healing machine could fix. As it was, Pearl was attached to a device that accelerated the healing, though at the cost of unavoidable pain.

'_Pearl…_' I called quietly.

One eye fluttered open. Almost as if on reflex, she tried to get to her feet, but let out a shuddering gasp as her right foreleg shook and finally gave out.

'_Josh…_ _I…I'm sorry, I can't seem to move…_'

'_You shouldn't try. You're hurt pretty bad._'

'_I lost…_' Slowly, and barely noticeable at first, she began to shake. Biting my lip, I got back down onto the stool, rolled it closer to the bed, and carefully climbed upon it. She was shaking terribly by this point, one eye still swollen shut, the other leaking tears. '_I lost, I wasn't strong enough for Noah…_'

'_Pearl…_'

"_She saved me," Karen said as she clung tightly to me, both voice and body shaking. "She saved me, and now she might…"_

"_She's a Ninetales," I told her. "She'll be fine."_

"_But… I… I've never done anything to warrant her attention, even. I've hated her. And she saved my life."_

I shook my head. That was then. This was now.

'_I need…to grow stronger. I can't fail him again—I _can't_, Josh.'_ Her eye found mine and I couldn't look away. '_I can't…be a failure.'_

'_You aren't… You're not even as old as I am, why would you be worried about…?'_

'_I just can't!_' she gasped, desperate. '_I…'_

'_I'll help you. I don't know how much, but I'll help you. I promise._'

'_P…promise…'_ she repeated, her eye beginning to close again. '_…Can't…fail…_'

I stayed with her until it was obvious she'd fallen to sleep again, troubled as that sleep was. Rina looked in at one point; I met her gaze, sighed, and dropped heavily to the floor.

As the door shut behind us, Pearl flinched. Her sleep would be troubled, but I wouldn't know how troubled until later.

* * *

(1) Pearl: Unlike Joshua, Pearl is fully Pokémon, and more to the point is still quite young. She's not been around long enough to adopt the official terminology nor to have other than a most basic grasp of the human language. As such, some of her descriptions of things that Joshua takes for granted (Pokémon Center, PokéBall) must be guessed at and given names by Pearl (human-building, "metal berries")

(2)Musical Terms: For those not musically inclined, soprano is the highest female part in vocal music—some sopranos can sing so high or with such force that they can shatter glass. Pianissimo is a musical term that means "extremely softly," with regards to the volume of a piece—here, in other words, Nathan is barely whispering.


	12. Intermission

A/N: Short, again, but that's the nature of intermissions, _n'est pas?_

Pokémon and all related official material belong to whomever they happen to belong to, which doesn't happen to be me; I only lay claim to characters of my origin.

**Chapter XII – Intermission **

No one's quite sure how it happened—at least, by the time I'd died no one knew for sure. The only issue was that it had happened, and it had changed Karen—hopefully, for the better.

Karen was staying with us in Mahogany Town—her parents had gone on a business trip to Almia, and their daughter, scared of Pokémon, came to stay with us. There were strict Trainer-limiting laws in Almia—even worse than Fiore—that prevented Ren and Kyra from taking more than a single Pokémon; at that point, Ren had been working with a stubborn, unfriendly Buneary, and brought her with him; Myst, therefore, had to stay behind, and she stayed with us in Mahogany as well, much to Karen's frustration. The other Pokémon in the Day Care were left under the most competent of Ren's assistants.

We—that is to say, my father, brother and I—were out that day. Ryan had shown interest in taking the Gym Leader position that Pryce was planning on vacating, and had gone to learn the ropes, and I, as any younger brother were wont to do, had gone with him. Dad—well, he'd just gone shopping, but then he did that a lot, single parent that he was. Four people in the house, plus Ryan's three Pokémon, Dad's Manectric, and Myst, made for a lot of groceries. Karen had remained at home—she wasn't much of a shopper, especially not for groceries, and of course the alternative was spending time in a cold room filled with Pokémon. Myst, protective as always, had stayed with her, lying languidly in the entryway, out of Karen's way.

And then… Well, I guess it's not my place to say. Karen recalled the event to me later—in the gruesome detail that fear provides—and so perhaps she should tell you instead.

**Karen** - **Four Years Ago; Saturday, July 17****th****, 3:49 PM**

I was jerked away from my reading by the sound of Myst growling. My heart raced, and it was all that I could do not to leap to the floor and hide. Had she finally decided to eat me…?

The noise subsided, and I released my death grip on the book. Now, however, I was restless and paranoid, and, after trying to return to the book several times, set the book down and pushed myself off of the bed and onto the floor.

After several minutes of staring dully out the window, I chided myself for being so afraid. I should have been used to the growls by now—it was easy to see that Myst and Uncle Kevin's Manectric did not get along. Falling asleep at night I would always hope that they'd tear each other up in the night so I wouldn't have to deal with either of them.

_I'm…such a coward._

Despite everyone's urgings, I could not overcome my fear completely, though it had improved—there was a point when I was younger that my dad had told me I'd become nearly schizophrenic. Pokémon were intelligent beings—they thought on some level, though apparently not as deeply as humans; but despite that they were still instinctual, base creatures, irrational and untrustworthy. They had powers that humans even today couldn't understand.

There were gentle ones—I knew that, I'd met several gentle Pokémon, ones that obviously sensed my fear and attempted to work around it. But so deeply engrained was my fear that even though I was almost positive of their intentions I wouldn't let them within a foot of me.

Myst started to growl again, and I jumped. I cast a glare in her general direction, frustrated that she'd knocked me out of my reverie. The noise only escalated, and I turned to tromp over to the bed and fold the pillow over my ears…

I froze. A burning smell had worked its way into my room.

_Fire? Did she…start a fire?_

**KABOOM.**

Then there was fire everywhere.

I reeled, deafened by the noise of something exploding, and feeling the heat of the flames as they raced into the room. The Cards were somewhat wealthy, and so had had hardwood floors and wooden dressers and the like—high-end mahogany and oak. All the wood that had been a sign of wealth was burning up like so much kindling.

My hearing returned, and as I backed away toward the window I heard somebody screaming; then I realized that I was hearing myself.

The window was at my back, and the house was only one story, but I had frozen in fear, completely sure I was going to die.

A golden-orange shape streaked out of the fire, snarling, and I screamed again—

…

"Karen!? _Karen!_"

"Is… alright?"

"Wh…yst?"

"What…ppened, any…!?"

I opened my eyes and immediately tried to force them shut as someone shone a flashlight straight into them.

"Come on, dear, I need your eyes open… Are you alright?"

The air was cool, and I felt grass beneath my hands. I let out a slow breath, and opened my eyes again. This time I managed to survive the light in my eyeballs, though not without squinting. Through the afterimages in my view I recognized a nurse from the local Pokémon Center, who let out a sigh of her own when I nodded weakly.

"She's awake," she called over my head, and I heard three pairs of footsteps rushing toward me.

"Karen, are you alright?" exclaimed Kevin.

"What happened, yo?" inquired Ryan. Joshua remained silent, though I could see he was pale after my uncle helped me sit up.

"You can be sure we'll investigate this thoroughly," said someone in the background.

Past my cousins' worried faces I saw the house. The fire was out, and most of the building had survived unscathed, though the kitchen looked as though it had been atomized.

"This'll take ages to fix… We just got this house, too, man," muttered Ryan. "Not to mention…" he trailed off and glanced at my uncle, who looked upset over more than the fact that part of his house had blown up. Had something happened to his Manectric?

Thinking of the one reminded me of the other, and I gasped, "Myst?"

"What?" snapped Joshua in disbelief. "You nearly die in a fire and the first word out of your mouth after you wake up is the name of a Pokémon?"

"Where is she!?"

"She… had to be taken to the Center," I heard Kevin mumble. "Along with Manectric. She… well, two of her tails were broken and one of her legs fractured from debris… There's also evidence that she suffered a blow to the head."

"Why…?" Then I remembered. "She… she saved me. She wrapped some of her tails around me and carried me out."

The shock began to wear off, and I began to tremble. I got unsteadily to my feet, despite Ryan's protests; I stumbled and lurched, latching onto the closest person, which happened to be Joshua.

"Whoa… Karen?"

"She saved me," I gasped, starting to cry. "She saved me, and now she might…"

"She's a Ninetales," he reassured me after a moment, wrapping his arms around me. "She'll be fine."

"B-but… I… I've never done anything to even warrant her attention… I've even hated her, and she saved me… She saved my life…"

* * *

Manectric died. The paramedics said there was nothing they could have done—he was dead before they arrived. Myst, it turned out, had several broken bones and a small head injury—but by the time the Center's Chansey were done with her, she hardly had a scar to show for it. And as soon as she walked out of the Center she gravitated toward Joshua. I looked at her; she looked at me, and I looked away, unable to decide what to say.

That night, though, in the hotel room I had been given—as part of the Gym Leader's extended family—she sat at the foot of my bed and stared at the wall, silent. She knew from experience that I wanted nothing to do with her, but obviously felt obligated to make sure I was safe.

"Myst," I said after a long silence, in a tiny voice. I heard the Ninetales gasp, surprised, but she got to her feet—her head rose a good foot and a half above the hotel bed—and stared at me.

Then, for the first time, I stuck out my hand as I'd seen Dad and Joshua do so many times, and said, "C…come here, please."

Her fur was not hot, but rather pleasantly warm, and soft and silky as…well, silk. I stroked the tuft of fur at the crown of her head, and she, after getting over the shock that I was actually touching her, craned her head up. Her breath touched my lower arm, and I drew it back—her breath _was_ hot. She immediately dropped her head, apparently ashamed, but I, after steeling myself, reached out again and began to stroke her soft fur.

"_Nnninetales…" _

"Th…that's n-not so bad," I reasoned with myself, and then realized, "I'm touching a Pokémon."

Myst froze, inhaling sharply.

"But…she's not hurting me…"

"_Ninetales."_

"M…Myst." I swallowed, then rolled out of bed. I crouched down to the Pokémon's level, hesitated a moment, then buried my face in her warm, soft fur. "I'm… I'm sorry… I'm so sorry…"

* * *

**Two Weeks Later; Azalea Town; 2:30 PM**

"_Pikachu?"_ asked Cirrus curiously as I stared at her across the kitchen table. She glanced at me, then quickly looked away.

My parents had returned from Almia as early as they could after hearing about the explosion at Joshua's, worried about Myst and I (though this still took two weeks because of some sort of contract); both of them were absolutely stunned when they found us in the hotel's lobby with her lying comfortably across my feet.

The Pikachu bent back down to her food bowl again. I got slowly to my feet and got behind her before her ear twitched and she froze.

She quickly unfroze as I scratched her back, however. She shook herself and turned toward me, head cocked in a "What's-going-on?" kind of way. I reached out a hand as I'd done with Myst—Cirrus' eyes followed my hand as it moved—and scratched her between the ears, and she made a pleased noise.

"_Pika… Chu Pikachu?_"

"I'm not scared anymore," I breathed, both to her and to myself, in wonder. "I can touch them. They won't hurt me." I reached down and grabbed the Pikachu off of the table, pulling her into a tight hug. "I'm not scared anymore!"

* * *

**Nathaniel**

Curiosity finally got the best of him, and Nathan flew down to land on the Center's room's dresser next to Josh, who had been staring at Karen for the past hour.

'_What's up?_'

'…_Decided to be civil?_' asked Joshua absently.

'_Hey, I know I'm a bit of an ass, but…_' Nathan bit his tongue, deciding that this wasn't the best way to start a conversation. '_Can we just say we got off on the wrong foot? I've been under a lot of pressure for about half a year now—since I was put into this body—and I guess I can't unwind all at once.'_ He had been an ass _before_ this, too, but not so much. '_...Agh. Anyway, like I said, what's up?'_

'_Tell me about yourself,_' suggested the Chikorita.

'_Wha…?_'

Josh sent a sideways glance at the Swablu; he looked irritated. '_You come in and act like a jerk to everyone but Noah, and suddenly you profess to be a nice guy who's curious about what other people think. Call me a skeptic, but I don't buy it._'

Nathan opened his beak, then shut it. '_Touché._'

'_I figure, if you want to know about someone, first you tell your story, then they tell theirs._'

'_Aren't you curious about me?_' he asked suspiciously.

'_Sure, but I've got other things on my mind. You're the one who wants to know. You talk, then I'll talk._'

Nathan glared at the Chikorita as he returned his gaze to his Trainer. '_…It's not worth the trouble._'

'…_Ass,_' muttered Joshua as Nathan flew back up to Noah. The boy was staring morosely up at the ceiling, his hands running over Pearl's PokéBall. The Chikorita was stable at last, and healing, though it would be another few hours before it was safe for her to wake up, and another few past that before she could be discharged.

He sighed, and Nathan gasped slightly; he was on the boy's stomach, and had not been prepared for the sudden, if slight, elevation drop.

"I'm worried about her," he murmured, not for the first time.

'_She's an immature daddy's-little-girl who's too polite for her own good,_' Nathan assured him in an even voice, and the boy smiled.

"You're worried about her, too, aren't you?"

'_No._ _Not really._' It was not in Nathan's character to care overmuch about others.

The room was heavy with depression, the silence so profound that Nathan felt almost weighted down by it.

"Why are you still here, Karen?" asked Noah after several minutes.

"What?" she responded, sounding half asleep.

"Pearl's my Pokémon, and you've already beaten Falkner. You don't have any reason to stay here."

Nathan heard her hesitate. "I…don't know. I just thought…" She paused. "A journey's more fun with several companions. We both have Chikorita, they seem to get along pretty well… You're not native to Johto, so it's best that you've got someone who knows a bit about it with you…"

'"_People only give multiple reasons for something when they're searching for what the other person wants to hear,"'_ quoted Nathan. (1)

But Noah seemed more or less content at this, and only nodded.

"I'm sorry about your Chikorita," Karen continued.

"It's not your fault."

'_You're the kind of person that likes to take the blame, aren't you?_' Nathan thought he heard Joshua inhale sharply. '_A little sacrificial Mareep …'_

'_Nathan, shut up!_' exclaimed Josh.

"Josh! Seriously, I'll put you in your Ball again if you keep growling at Cumulus."

Nathan changed positions, perching on the sideguard of the upper bunk and staring down at Joshua. There was a strange fire in the Chikorita reborn's eyes, an irritation, an urge to protect Karen that went beyond the fact that he was her Pokémon.

'_What is she to you?_' he asked.

'_She's my…_' He stopped, shook his head. '_No. If you really want to know…'_

'…_Sister?' _No reaction. '_Girlfriend? Ah… cousin?_'

Joshua cursed quietly and dropped from the dresser, passing out of Nathan's field of vision as he climbed up onto Karen's bunk. Nathan didn't chase him, satisfied at the other's irritation; he remained perched on the bunk's guard for another few minutes as a moody silence fell upon the room again; then he returned to the pillow next to Noah's head.

"Tomorrow's our Independence Day," said Karen a few minutes later. Nathan grunted and woke up from the half-sleep he'd just found.

'_Oh yeah,_' said Josh. '_The day we officially declared our independence from Kanto…'_

"Oh?" said Noah.

"Yeah. There'll be parties all over; lots of businesses will be closed… I'm just saying… It may be hard to get a battle with Falkner tomorrow."

"If you're tired of waiting for me," interrupted Noah before she could continue, "then go ahead and leave."

Nathan cast a critical glance at the boy. He had obstinately crossed his arms and was looking straight up, an angry expression on his face.

'_What's with you, anyway?'_ he wondered, more to himself than not. '_You bipolar, or what?_'

"No, that's not…" Karen sighed. "…I can't stand people who jump so readily to conclusions."

"Then I guess you can't stand me. Whatever. I don't need your help, anyway…"

'_But Pearl…'_ Josh sounded desperate. '_Guys, come on, don't… don't do this…Not… not now… '_

"Let's go, Josh."

'_But… Karen, hey! No, Karen, I made a promise…!' _

Nathan could hear Joshua continue to protest even as the door shut, though eventually it faded into silence.

* * *

(1)"People only give…wants to hear": A quote by Gregory House, from the show _House, M.D._—the episode entitled "It's a Wonderful Lie."

A/N: …Yeah. That's right. I quoted _House._


	13. Night Lights

A/N: I'm on a roll of sorts, I think, since after this chapter I know precisely what I want to happen, which should mean another few chapters relatively quickly.

By the way, if you've read this far, I congratulate you. But what would make me even happier is a review. All the reviews I've gotten for the past few chapters are from someone who's already seen the chapters more or less as they appear.

Maybe it's bad form to ask for reviews, but… Please. If you've got the time—and I know, if you've read this far into the Author's Note, that you've got time (because who really reads author's notes [besides me]?)—drop a review on your way out.

[generic_disclaimer]Pokémon and all official related trademarks belong to Nintendo/Game Freak/The Pokémon Company/all other rightful owners/not me. [/generic_disclaimer]

* * *

**Chapter XIII – Night Lights**

**Nathaniel **(1)

She looked so heartbroken it wasn't funny.

There was hurt in Pearl's eyes; her leaf drooped sadly; she actually seemed to sort of wilt down onto the table.

I could hear Noah's sharp inhalation, and almost laughed. '_You know, I actually think telling them to get lost was a bad idea. Too bad it's too late to apologize. '_

"I'm sorry, Pearl," Noah muttered. "I…I suppose I shouldn't have said that, but…"

'_He promised me, Noah._'

There was a gravity in her voice that sounded totally alien to me; likewise, when she looked up, her face was scrunched up into an angry expression foreign to her face. Her eyes, which had seemed cool before, were now glistening coldly.

'_He promised he'd help me, and… and now, what have you done?_' She shuddered. '_Because you got angry, he can't help me, and he's going to feel bad, and now, without him, I…I…'_

Noah seemed at a loss for words, obviously taken off guard at the anger in his Chikorita's gaze. I chuckled silently and leapt off of his shoulder, landing in front of her on the bed she'd been resting on for the past day or so. She flinched as I landed, eyes fixing on my wings.

'_You… don't you _dare_ say a word,_' she snapped.

'…_This isn't like you,_' I observed. '_Where's the polite little girl?'_

She swallowed, but didn't reply.

'…_Do you lack that much confidence? Without Josh, all of a sudden, you're weaker than ever before…'_

'_I l-lost before I had a chance to make a m-move._' She turned away from me. '_He promised he'd help m-make m-me stron…stronger, b-but…'_

And she began to cry.

"Oh, Pearl..." muttered Noah, reaching out for her, but he drew his hand back as I pecked at him and Pearl pulled herself away. "…Oh. I see."

My gaze switched back to Pearl, now sobbing in earnest.

'_Stop,_' I told her, which had no effect. I sighed. '_Cut it out, please?_'

This only seemed to intensify her emotion, and out of desperation I raised what I thought was an arm to grab the chin she didn't have…

'_Enough! Eh…?'_

Except that I'd in fact raised a cottony wing to her face, and she buried her face in it and continued to cry.

I stayed frozen, beak half open, for several moments. What was I doing? I didn't comfort people…

I snatched my wing back, shaking it irritably. The action caused Pearl's head to snap forward a little—she'd been leaning into my wing—and when she realized I was no longer supporting her the crying only seemed to get worse.

I tore my eyes away finally and flew to the other side of the room, ignoring Noah's gasp of surprise.

"Cumulus, what…?"

'_Shut up.'_ I turned back to look at him—my gaze lingering on Pearl for a moment longer than I intended—and beckoned with my dry wing. '_Get over here. Leave her alone._'

**Joshua**

She was still angry that afternoon as we stopped just south of Violet City.

Karen sighed, leaning against the fence by the side of the path, eventually sitting down and staring resolutely at nothing. I leapt off of her shoulder, and moved around in front of her, but she barely seemed to notice I was there.

'_We need to go back,' _I told her. When this failed to motivate her, I continued, '_Listen, Karen, I know he seemed insensitive, but… he didn't mean it, you know? He's done that sort of thing before, remember?_'

"…Maybe I was the one overreacting."

'_Yeah, you were. Now go back and apologize.'_

"…I don't have time to go back," she muttered, apparently to herself. I raised a forefoot and tried to wave it to get her attention, but as I expected she continued to stare through the air above my head. "Independence Day's tomorrow, I want to go spend it with my family…"

'_Feeel guuuilltyy,' _I droned to her oblivious ears.

"…He'll catch up. He's got to be headed to Azalea Town next, anyway."

'_No!'_ I snapped, finally fed up. Karen finally looked down, surprised to see me hopping indignantly in place.

"Josh?"

'_I'm not going, you hear me!?_' I don't know if you've ever heard a Chikorita scream at the top of its lungs, but let me tell you, as one who's done it, it's not as effective as you might like. I pointed in the direction we'd come from, which I hoped was still the general direction of Violet City.

"What's wrong?"

'_Go back!'_

She stared at me, and as she did a strange combination of emotions flashed across her face. Curiosity, frustration, one that looked like deep thought; finally, she settled to shifting her gaze from me to the direction I was still gesturing in and back.

She opened her mouth, inhaled as if to say something, then shut it again, leaning her head back against the fence with a slow exhalation.

"You're right. I… I can't just leave like that. Though I suppose you're just mad that you didn't get to say goodbye to Pearl, huh." She paused, and I saw her eyes move back and forth as she gazed into the darkening sky.

For a moment, intrigued for a reason I couldn't identify just then, I followed her gaze. Being more or less physically unable to look straight up, I was only able to look up about sixty degrees, past where Karen was looking. The sun was behind us—I could feel my leaf absorbing what was left of the light—and I could see in the east the first few stars emerging. I thought, for an instant, that there was the barest of shimmers in the space between the lowest star and the start of the nature on the horizon, but dismissed it as a trick of the light.

"…I feel bad about not visiting my parents. But there'll be time for that later." My cousin pushed herself to her feet, then crouched back down to my level. "…Can… Um, do you mind if I just carry you, this time?"

'_Wha…?_' She'd not asked to carry me since the funeral.

"I'd feel more comfortable. I'd have something to hold onto." Her gaze dropped. "…You probably don't understand. Sometimes it's just helpful to have something to hold onto, you know?"

…_The Cyndaquil doll._ Wordlessly, I nodded, and she reached down and gingerly lifted me back up to her chest. I squirmed into a more comfortable position as she wrapped her arms about my midsection, and then stared forward as she began to walk back the way we'd come.

Did humans really have such long steps? It was getting hard to remember…

**Nathaniel**

'…_I'm sorry._'

I stared into her eyes, more lost in thought than anything. The unrelenting attention of a Flying-type, though, was beginning to unnerve her, and Pearl hesitated before continuing.

'…_You probably care about your wings. They're so clean. And… I…'_

'…_Never mind,_' I said shortly.

'…_You didn't intend for that to happen. I took advantage of a mistake, and… I'm sorry.'_

'_Never mind!_' I snapped, and she flinched in earnest this time. '_…Just…don't expect it to happen again, alright?_'

'_O…of course, Cumulus.'_

'_Nathan!_' I corrected her instantly. Did no one ever learn? '_My name is Nathan. I only go with Cumulus because I can't tell Noah otherwise.'_

Said Trainer was sitting in the single visitor's chair along the wall, elbows on his knees and chin in hand. He'd gone there after Pearl had shied away from him, and had not changed positions once in the past few minutes.

'_Noah?_'

When Pearl looked at him and called his name, he blinked, as though he hadn't been wholly awake.

'_Noah…_'

I flew over to his shoulder and he gasped, apparently unsure whether I'd attack him again. I had no intention of doing so, however, and after figuring this out my Trainer grabbed his walking stick and limped over to Pearl, who had tears glistening in her turquoise eyes again.

'_I'm sorry, Noah. I didn't mean to… um…' _Pearl fell silent, unable to find the right thing to say. (2)

'_Touching,_' I drawled before Noah could respond. '_Have your little make-up scene, but I don't want to be part of it.'_

* * *

**Myst**

_/I've got a bad feeling about this, to be honest/_

She barely reacted—perhaps the flick of an ear gave indication that she'd heard the Mew's comment.

_/…I don't know why. I mean, I've orchestrated out everything to end up the way I want it to/_ he continued, a flicker of presence on the other side of the Ashlockes' kitchen. _/And it won't be like that massive Titan revolt a few years back, I've made sure of that. But…/_

He paused, apparently annoyed that she wasn't paying attention to him; she continued to eat, exhausted from dealing with the unruly Gastrodon.

_/Myst. This concerns Karen and Joshua/_

'_I am aware,_' she assured him after swallowing, and then barely suppressed a grimace: the Day Care was waiting for its food shipment, and in the meantime she was forced to settle for low-quality Growlithe food.

/_Then stop pretending to not care!/_

'_I am unable to be as lucid as I would like at the moment. It is distracting enough listening to you. The Gastrodon will only be out for a few minutes, and then it will likely start the same antics again.'_

He sighed—a gesture completely unnecessary, as he was currently in the guise of a Haunter, intangible and invisible. _/…Then…/_

'_What is the cause of your discomfort?'_

_/You _aren't_ listening to me/_ he declared, vindicated._ /If you were you'd know I've said twice now that I don't know, I can't place a paw on it. It's…/_

She padded softly out of the kitchen, passing by Raymond. The Breeder smiled at her, and then shivered as a chill—the Mew-Haunter—passed through him. To Myst's spiritually-tuned senses, the Haunter was tapping its claws together, distracted.

'…_You are talking to me about it,_' she stated flatly. _'That is endearing: but why, when I am but a long-lived mortal? Certainly at least Mesprit would understand.'_

_/She knows, she does, but, but… You don't know her, Myst, she feels, but she doesn't think much. Emotion and instinct are very much entwined, and together there's little room for reason—especially since that's Uxie's jurisdiction. And other than that… I can't tell anyone, because this whole endeavor is…/_

Myst passed through the open back door and into the yard. It was sunny out, and in his guise as the Ghost-type, the Mew could not follow her without exposing himself. Despite the fact she either no longer was able to or cared to hear him, he finished his statement before vanishing in a small flash of psychic power.

_/…it's hitting awfully close to home/_

**Joshua**

Karen had already spoken of her intentions: she would return first to the Pokémon Center, since that was likely where Noah would stay the night (though she figured he would be out by now, challenging Falkner again), and ask the nurse to get the room back. When she did so, the Nurse—a stout woman with steely gray hair and a fair set of frown lines—scowled, wondering why she was renewing a reservation she'd already canceled. She relented eventually, and Karen paid.

We—both of us—were unprepared to see him sitting in the corner, in the armchair he'd taken the night we'd met. Pearl was sitting on the upper bunk, staring down at him with a confused expression on her face. Nathan was nowhere to be seen, so I figured he'd been put away in his Ball.

He looked up as we entered, and the light from the ceiling reflected off of his glasses for a moment. Karen inhaled, and then both of them at once very nearly shouted "I'm sorry!"

"I didn't mean to say that…"

"I shouldn't have reacted…"

"I realized you're right, this will be hard on my own…"

"But still…"

I slipped off of Karen's shoulder as the two continued apologizing profusely to each other, my attention more or less focused on Pearl. I climbed the armchair's left arm—from my perspective—swung around behind Noah, and realized I couldn't get any higher on my own. I could only lay behind Noah's head and try not to fall, looking up at Pearl. The other Chikorita repeatedly looked back and forth between her Trainer and me, her eyes showing alternate emotions of worry and relief.

* * *

'_Pearl, what's wrong?_'

She cast a glance at Rina, and then looked back at me, but didn't answer.

'…_Look.'_ I inhaled. '_If you're trying to defend somebody, that's noble, but… You're hurting, Pearl, and neither Rina nor I want to see that. What's wrong?'_

"…I don't know what I'm going to do. If I go back to Falkner, he'll flatten me again."

'_W-well…_' Pearl looked up at her Trainer and shut her mouth again.

'_Pearl,' _said Rina gently, half-crouched in a non-threatening position. '_If it has to do with us leaving, you don't have to worry about it any more.'_

'_And if it has to do with Nathan…_' I paused, looking around for the Swablu, who remained perched on the top of Nathan's walking stick and seemed more interested in the humans' conversation than in ours. '_If it has to do with Nathan, you can be sure we'll…'_

'_No!'_ she cried suddenly, cutting me off. '_It's not him. Well…not entirely. It's just that…'_

She explained the temporary falling-out she and Noah had experienced earlier, and Nathan's strange-yet-predictable behavior.

"We're back, Noah. If you want training…"

'_I don't care if he wants it or not._' I smiled at Pearl, who still looked downtrodden. '_I promised I'd help you, so that's what I'll do.'_

"…Not tonight." I heard Noah yawn. "It's…almost bedtime. But tomorrow…"

* * *

It looked to be a fine day for a fireworks show. The sun hadn't yet made it above the horizon completely, and in the park across the street the cries of the Pidgey and Spearow still waking up created a relaxing atmosphere.

I let out a tense breath. Across the battlefield, I saw Pearl biting her lower lip nervously. To my left, Rina was bouncing on her tail, agitated ('_I told you before, I don't like fighting...'_) yet excited (_'…but I may be willing to make an exception for Nathan.'_) Nathan was observing us from beside Pearl; he seemed the only calm one of all of us, and if he was nervous at all his black eyes didn't show it.

"A double battle," I heard Karen muse from behind me, not for the first time. "Those never caught on in Johto and Kanto, Noah."

"But it helps me learn to think," he countered, and Nathan nodded slightly. "A one-on-one Pokémon match requires quick thought to make sure your Pokémon always hits the other… but in a double battle, you have to learn to fight on two fronts or combine powers as necessary, and you have to always make sure one Pokémon isn't in the way of the other."

'_Strategy._' Nathan huffed. '_I've never seen a Trainer as young as Noah worry about strategy._' He spread his wings and flapped them, as if to experiment. '_Let's see, then, how good your strategy is._'

I heard Karen shuffle a little into the dirt, adopting a generic Trainer-in-battle pose. Noah's grip upon his stick tightened, and his other hand clenched into a fist.

"I've never done this before," Karen breathed behind us, and I cast a worried glance back at her.

"Pearl, Tackle Josh! Cumulus, Fury Attack on Rina!"

Karen, Rina, and I all tensed—and I was afraid for a moment she'd locked up again, like she had against Falkner. But then--

"Josh, Razor Leaf, and Rina, uh, Quick Attack!"

She hadn't given either of us a target, and I was forced to assume she meant the attacks to be reciprocal. Pearl continued to rush at me, eyes closed, and I tensed, swinging my leaf back—

Growling and squawking erupted to my left as Rina and Nathan collided ("Scratch!" ordered Karen); the Swablu won free before Rina could land her next attack, and continued with his Fury Attack. I wondered why Rina kept insisting she didn't like to fight; she certainly seemed to get into it.

I started, realizing I'd been watching the fighting for three or four seconds now and still hadn't been Tackled. I looked back to see Pearl sitting in front of me, one eye half-open.

'_I can't._' She swallowed. '_You're…um, you're my friend. I can't…_'

"Pearl?" I heard Noah interject, before he was forced to return to Nathan's battle.

I moved forward a step and brought a forefoot up to her cheek.

'_You've got to. I'm the only one you can fight. Nathan is too strong for you—he's giving Rina a hard time, and she's stronger than I am. Besides, look at the way she's fighting.'_

Karen hadn't commented on the fact that Pearl and I hadn't attacked each other; she seemed happy, even, that the battle had returned to a semi one-on-one style that she was more familiar with. This had allowed her to focus on Rina, though the Sentret was Scratching and Tackling quite effectively on her own.

She leapt up onto her tail again, splaying her claws and screeching. She looked a little worn; apparently some of Nathan's Fury Attacks had hit. Nathan hovered in the air, looking down at her with a bit of a cocky glint playing in his eyes.

'_Ha, ha… Too bad you can't fly, eh, Rina?_'

I wondered if it was in the nature of Flying-types to be arrogant, or if it was just Nathan's normal self-serving attitude showing through.

I shook my head, returning to Pearl, who was now sitting with both eyes open and staring at the ground.

'_Hey._' I returned my forefoot to her cheek. '_I know. You're like Rina claims to be—you don't like to hurt people. Personally, I think she's got some kind of Zangoose-Seviper relationship with Nathan, but…_' When she stared at me blankly, having never heard of those Pokémon, I laughed a little, nervously. '_A…anyway, you've got to pretend I'm not another Chikorita. Pretend I'm… hmm… Pretend I'm a Pidgey.'_

'_Pidgey are scary. And, umm, you…can't fly,_' she pointed out after a moment.

I dropped my forefoot back down, exhaling a little. '_Eh…b-both excellent points, Pearl. But you've got to pretend—otherwise you'll lock up when that Pidgey of Falkner's looks at you. That's what Flying-types can do to little Grass-types like you and me._' She nodded. '_But if you get practice in now, you won't be so afraid. If nothing else, do it so you have a reason to attack me, alright? You can always ask Nathan to help you with the scary-look part later.'_

She cocked her head, uncertainty dimming her turquoise eyes. '_But… um…_' She blinked. '_Okay._'

'_Okay. Now go back over to where you started and let's try this again. And remember, this time I'm not a Chikorita, I'm a fearsome little Pidgey! Raaaawr!'_

* * *

"Closed…"

Noah seemed to scowl a little as he read the letter pinned to the Gym's door.

"It…er, it _is _a holiday, Noah," Karen reminded him.

"That's not why it's closed, though. Here," he added, hading the letter to Karen. I looked down at the paper, watching the letters pass in and out of focus as I scanned it.

_Is…that an E? Or an A? Maybe an F… I can't tell…_ I sighed.

"'Sabbatical'…?" Karen _hmm'_d. "That's a trip that someone takes to recover from something, to reflect, and learn… I suppose it makes sense, for a Gym Leader." She fell silent, reading through the rest of the note. "It says here that he's not gone yet, though. 'Will be in town until after Independence Day, may battle if so inclined.' He's still around, and if you find him he might actually battle you again."

Noah pulled out Pearl's PokéBall and stared at it reflectively. "Maybe it's just as well. One day of training won't have made a lot of difference…"

How little he knew. Pearl had come a long way; though she still hesitated to attack me full force, she had still fought and given me a little of a challenge; she had ended up with both Poisonpowder and Razor Leaf, which meant she was on the same level I'd been when we started; I hadn't learned any new attacks, but I felt stronger. (3)

"I don't know," Karen hinted, confirming my suspicions. "I think you got a lot done today, Noah. And you helped me. We all got stronger because of it."

I saw Noah smile; then he stuck the notice back on the Gym door and asked "Now what?"

"Well… We trained for most of the day. It's almost four now… Festivities usually start around fiveish, and there's a fireworks show—" She paused here, giddily excited; since Azalea Town was surrounded on two sides by Ilex Woods and contained a great many trees, fireworks shows were rare to unheard-of there—"that'll probably be around eight or nine, depending on when it gets dark."

"Sounds like fun."

'_Oh, you bet, Verdanturf boy,_' I muttered, grinning slyly. '_You bet._'

* * *

**From **_**A History of Kanto and Johto,**_** Revised 2025(4) ed.,****by Thomas Erwin-Cairne, edited by Aaron Smythe; Chapter 13: The Jotoshi War**

…_While the two [regions] coexisted quite peacefully for a time, it was always on the minds of Johto's people that their land was owned by another, and in due time…they began to resent it._

_[…]_

_The conflicts started small, mostly the result of an underground resistance movement, but soon the people as a whole were motivated to strive for independence, and a war began in January of 1822._

_[…]_

_Perhaps it was foolish of the Kantoshi to even try to take back Johto by force, for they were the invaders, having to cross mountains, through the cave known today as Silver, or through the bottleneck that was Tohjo Falls. The Jotoshi had only to position themselves correctly and they were all but impenetrable: fresh, unburdened, Pokémon ready to fight to the death…_

_The war was lost from the start; and as such, May 2__nd__, 1823, Johto was declared a region independent of Kanto._

_However…attempts to form an independent league for Trainers failed, and…a compromise was eventually reached by the governments of [Kanto and Johto] that they would share the same league, positioned equidistant between Johto's Blackthorn City and Kanto's Viridian City, where it remains to this day._

[ ]

**Joshua**

Ever seen fireworks? Have you, listener? Well, I'm surprised. Then you know how spectacular fireworks shows are, then.

It was nighttime, and based on the time of year I'd guess around eight-thirty. What looked like the entirety of Violet City's population was gathered just south of Violet City. All eyes were up in the sky, enjoying the beautiful starlit night before the show proper started. Karen was down on her sleeping bag, and Noah on his. Pearl rested comfortably upon his head, as he was laying upon his stomach, while I rested on Karen's leg, as she was laying faceup and looking straight up. Rina had settled on her stomach; Nathan had settled on Noah's back, and actually seemed to be asleep.

I chuckled quietly to myself when I saw his lack of interest. So either he was from Johto, or was a foreigner, like Noah, who just didn't care, unlike Noah.

"Ashlocke," grunted a familiar voice. I felt Karen start, and tumbled off of her leg as she sat up.

Falkner nodded down at her, leaning on his cane. Karen got to her feet, and Noah, after noticing the Gym Leader, started to do the same.

"Don't bother, boy, it'd be a lot more trouble than it's worth." Falkner barked a laugh. "They'll be looking for me up front to start off the show, but I'm not interested. I'm about to leave town, for Lugia's sake, I'm not about to get up there and talk about wanting to stay." He shrugged. "Mind if an old man takes a seat?"

"Eh? Oh, n-not at all." Karen moved her sleeping bag over as Falkner set down a lawn chair. The Gym Leader sighed as he dropped into it, closing his eyes and looking up at the sky.

"Sir?" Noah started quietly, but Falkner apparently didn't hear him. "Um, Mr. Falkner, sir."

"Eh?"

"…I…um, I've done a lot of training, and I was wondering…"

"You want a battle? Now?" Falkner laughed again. "Now, I like your guts, boy; cocky like a Spearow, you are. But just because I don't want to speak at the show doesn't mean I don't want to enjoy it. Besides…" He paused and moved into a more comfortable position. "You're on a journey, and I'm on a journey. I've got plans for Ecruteak, Cianwood, and Mahogany along the way; if you're fast enough maybe you'll catch up. Tell you what, boy: if you manage to catch up to me in Ecruteak City with Thane's Badge in hand I'll give you the Zephyrbadge without a fight."

"S-sir?"

"If you can get three Gym Badges and still catch up to me on my first stop, you're guaranteed to be a better Trainer than I. Show me the Fog Badge in Ecruteak City and I'll give you my Zephyrbadge. Now shut up, it's about to start."

**Dominic**

"Independence Day, huh?"

"_Charmeleon."_

"Aye, tha's what I thought, too." Dominic shrugged. "Boom, crash, lots'a noise an' light, an' for what? 'Cuz they won a war over two hundred years ago now."

He let out a laugh, and Dante laughed with him.

"I've never been much for crowds, anyway. C'mon, let's get on the way to the next city."

"_Charmeleon? Char…"_

"Her? Oh, I've no doubts the rookie'll catch up, with the Gym Leader gone an' all. We'll just have to take it a little slow, eh?"

"_Charmeleon!"_ exclaimed Dante, excited.

"Aye. Then you can get your battle. Now, let's go before they start the fireworks."

* * *

(1)Nathan in First Person: Before this, all of Nathan's segments have been in third person; such third-person segments are told that way because the events were never recounted to Joshua, so Joshua cannot tell them himself (in the case of last chapter, it was a question of which side of the argument I wanted to have seen). Segments in first person are either from Joshua himself (of course) or tales that have been recounted to Joshua so that he can retell them (like Karen's flashbacks).

Myst's segment, you'll notice, is in third person—as opposed to first person before. This is the same principle, only in reverse.

(2)Thing to say: In theory, this should be "find the right words," but as will be discussed later (I promise) Pokémon do not speak in words but in ideas.

(3) Feel Stronger : For reference (mine and yours): Pearl lv.9, three levels from Synthesis and seven from evolution; Joshua lv. 11, one level from Synthesis and five from evolution; Nathan lv.15, three levels from Safeguard and 17 from evolution; Rina lv.14, two levels from Helping Hand [Sentret _or _Furret], one level from evolution.

Learnsets and evolutions levels acquired from Bulbapedia.

(4) 2025: This date has been specifically chosen and calculated based upon the events of my other stories. This story—_A Fear of Change_—takes place in 2029, and the book that is the subject of this footnote is revised every five years.

Yes. I went and worked it out. I have a timeline stretching almost four pages (in MS Word) that covers the major events of the history of the Pokémon world, as well as the details of all of my stories along the primary (continuous) timeline—which includes all of my Pokémon stories except for one called _Loyalties_, which was a bust, but from whom I have drawn some of the major characters (Joshua and Pearl) of this story, and _Trust_, which, though its author's note currently states otherwise, does not occur in the same series of events as this story.

A/N: Yes, the title is a little inept, since there are no night-lights (fireworks); and I think I made the lines that inspired it subtle enough that you may not figure it out.

…Ha. Ha. Good luck.

'Till next time—hopefully, pretty soon.


	14. Furreting My Way Out

A/N: If you think this is up fast, Glacial, then you'd be right: I happened to check my email less than a minute after you sent it, ha, ha.

Pokémon and all related official material, including names and locations, belong to whomever it is they belong to, which is not me. I do own most of the original characters, though, except for Rina and Nathan, so if you want to use my characters (and I'd be honored if you did), please feel free to contact me about it.

**Chapter XIV – Furreting My Way Out**

**Joshua**

By ten or so next morning, Violet City was disappearing behind us.

Karen took the lead, since she'd already come this way and knew best how to get home. I had taken my place on her shoulder (though I was beginning to realize that before long, as a Bayleaf, I'd be too big to do so anymore); Rina, for once too restless to stay inside her PokéBall, was walking along beside her.

She had no trouble keeping up, since Karen herself was in no hurry. Noah, though he had originally been painfully aware (and painfully obviously so) that he was slowing her down a little, now seemed grateful for the slower speed and stayed just behind Karen, the sound of his uneven steps now almost as regular to me as Karen's own, more rhythmic ones. Pearl was walking calmly beside her Trainer, and Nathan, though he had originally found shelter on top of Noah's head, had quickly become tired of the monotony and asked to be returned to his Ball.

I took another look down at Rina, and I let worry play across my features, not for the first time. The Sentret was shaking, just slightly, and her breathing sounded shallow. She'd been like this all morning; when we'd woken up she'd been pacing the windowsill in the Pokémon Center's room, and had told me she'd been feeling strange since the practice yesterday.

'_It didn't really bother me until after you all went to sleep,_' she'd said as Karen was in the ladies' room, dressing. '_And then…all of a sudden, I just couldn't keep still. I had to move._'

I let out a small "_Chiko…_" of sympathy; Karen, noticing this, looked down.

"Rina…?"

She stopped, and I dropped off of her shoulder as she picked the Sentret up. In her arms, unable to really move, Rina began shaking more violently.

I heard Noah slow to a stop behind us. "Karen? What, is Rina sick or something?"

Karen held the back of her hand to Rina's forehead—or, at least, the space between her eyes and ears, which wasn't much.

"_S-Sentret,_" said Rina, more of a sound than a statement. Karen shushed her, gently, then prodded her in several spots on her back. On the third prod, Rina squealed, her arms spasming slightly.

"Oh…" Karen drew Rina up higher, so her face was visible over the Trainer's shoulder. She looked miserable. "She's not…sick, as such, no."

She got back to her feet, still holding Rina tightly. "She's got PESES (1)."

"Pieces?" parroted Noah.

"Um. It's pronounced like that, but it's spelled P, E, S, E, S. PESES. Sentret get it a lot, I've heard. Since Furret are extremely active, curious Pokémon, not as cautious and careful as Sentret, they require more energy. Even though she hasn't evolved yet, Rina's body has started producing all the energy she'll need as a Furret." She began walking again, and Noah with her; I waited until he and Pearl had caught up, and then started walking with them.

'_She looks like she's in pain,_' said Pearl unhappily. '_…Will that happen when I'm ready to evolve?'_

'_Every Pokémon can get it,'_ I told her, not at that point realizing what it was I was doing. '_At least, every Pokémon that can evolve. Though I don't think it's too common among Chikorita._ _Th… Uh, __**we**__ get all the energy we'd need from the sun, and if we don't use it it just turns into oxygen._'

"I bet you picked that up in the Day Care," chuckled Noah, and Karen nodded. She seemed barely aware of the rest of us, focused as she was on Rina; acting more like a mother to her baby than a Trainer to her Pokémon, she shushed her whimpers, singing a relaxing little ditty that hitherto I'd only heard Ren sing, and then only to the smallest of baby Pokémon.

'…_Hmm._'

I looked back over at Pearl to see that she was already looking at me, a thoughtful expression on her face.

'_W-what?_' I asked.

'…_You know a lot._' She paused. '_You're not much older than I am. But you know so much more…_'

'_Uh…'_ _Oh, no, did I just blow my cover?_

'_Unless Karen decided to tell you all about P…um…PESES on her own, why would you know? And why would she tell you?_'

I suppose I should have realized earlier, listener, but it hit me just at that point that under the guise of the politest little Chikorita in the world there was a very calculating, logical mind. That it had developed so quickly was astounding in itself, though Chikorita are renowned as being the cleverest of all the starters, except perhaps Treecko and Chimchar.

She kept her gaze on me, the barest of frowns visible on her face, obviously expecting an answer.

'_W-well… Uh…'_

I looked back up at Rina, who had curled even farther down in Karen's arms: only the tips of her ears could be seen from my two-foot vantage point.

'_I g-guess you could, uh, say that…'_

Her gaze didn't so much as flicker.

'…_It's complicated,_' I finished lamely.

"It's only going to get worse," Karen mumbled from the front before Pearl could reply. "We'll have to stop somewhere and induce evolution, or she'll be essentially immobilized from the pain…"

* * *

The place looked eerily similar to the small clearing where we'd first met Rina, though I kept telling myself that it was the middle of a forest, and it all looked the same.

Noah carefully set himself down a ways back, intending to stay well out of the way of the battle that would doubtless erupt. Pearl and I continued, following Karen to the other end of the clearing—which was decently sized, but still a little small, perhaps all of twenty or thirty feet.

Here, still cooing softly to the whimpering Rina, she set the Sentret down, and sat herself beside her.

"Rina… Are you listening?"

'_Y-y-yes,_' Rina stammered, now shaking quite violently even unrestrained.

"I need you to focus. Josh," she called, and I stepped forward. "I need you and Rina to fight."

'_Wh-wh-what!' _exclaimed Rina. '_I c-c-can't fight l-like this-s… Annnd I'd-d ne-never hur-rr-t Josh…'_

"Not a lot," soothed Karen. "But you're on the borderline to evolve, and you need to fight so that you can actually evolve."

I grimaced, knowing what was coming.

"Josh… I need you to land the first attack."

She'd really thought this out! Had something like this really happened that often at the Day Care?

Landing the first attack on a Pokémon otherwise able to control their muscles due to PESES makes their instincts go haywire and shift into a wild, unrestrained battle mode. It leads, of course, to massive pain on the part of the attacker and the attacked; but there is no other way to induce evolution unless you're lucky enough to possess a Rare Candy.

'_Can I help?_' asked Pearl.

"Pearl?" Karen smiled weakly. "I'm glad you're willing to help, sweetie, but there's no point in three Pokémon getting injured if we can keep it down to two."

…I'd heard something like that before. Where had I heard that before?

I pondered this for a moment, and then gave up, looking to Karen as Pearl, looking only a little disappointed, began to make her way back across the clearing.

"Josh… I don't know how much help I'll be, since she'll be moving awfully fast. You'll have to fight on your own. Don't worry, if things get too out of hand I'll return you to your Ball to rest, alright? And… please, I don't have any Antidote, so don't use Poisonpowder."

I nodded, bracing myself, trying to ignore the combination of agony and pleading in Rina's eyes as the Sentret looked back at me.

"Josh… Razor Leaf!" ordered Karen, and I obliged.

There followed a very disorienting few seconds full of screeching and flailing and tumbling and pain before Rina's momentum made her tumble past me. I pushed myself back to my feet, my face already covered in scratches. Rina recovered, turning. Karen obviously got a look at her eyes at the same time I did, and I heard her let out a small cry of fear: if there was anything of a calm, rational mind left in Rina her eyes did not show it. Her eyes spoke of her berserker nature.

All in a single motion she was in front of me, arm raised and claws splayed. I chose a direction and dove, and miraculously she wasn't there. I turned and Razor Leafed her again, scoring a decent hit at close range; she turned, screeching furiously, and I flung myself forward into a spur-of-the-moment Tackle, which slid her back a few feet—the claws of her rear feet had dug into the ground, leaving a series of scores—and after a moment to regain her breath (she seemed barely fazed!) she bounced (2) off of her tail and into the air.

I backed up nervously, looking up in every direction I could; but of course the flaw of Chikorita is that they cannot look straight up.

She plowed into me from the sky, knocking the breath out of my body, and then latching onto my leaf with her teeth.

I screamed.

"Josh!"

'_Nnnooo!'_ In that instant, I became…aware…of the nature around me. I could feel the grass growing, and the trees absorbing the sunlight, the continuity and indestructibility of nature.

_Is this…Overgrow? _

Then, as though she'd received a terrible shock from my leaf, Rina leapt off; and then I became aware of the sunlight, and how good it felt, and how it felt like it was actually healing me…

_Synthesis…_

I turned to face her, and for the first time in the battle we were both still, staring at each other.

And then _she_ screamed. And she began to evolve.

**The Listener**

He pauses here, again uncertain. The Listener cocks its head curiously.

'_Evolution,_' says Joshua thoughtfully. '_…is not a pretty sight. Nor is it comfortable by any definition of the word. You'll understand later.' _He sighs. '_Not a pretty sight at all.'_

**Joshua**

I'll spare you the more gruesome details, because a Sentret's skeleton reforming to that of a Furret's is not only nigh-impossible to describe, it also involves a great deal of screaming and pain on the part of the Furret.

With a sudden _whoosh_, there was suddenly a sort of field of energy around her. It's difficult to describe this energy as anything but _evolution energy_, because it wasn't energy in the traditional sense. It was like a localized distortion of spacetime, a wall of not-quite opaque force surrounding and taking on Rina's body shape. There was the sound of another bone or two resetting itself, and then just as suddenly as it had come the energy was gone and Rina the Sentret had become Rina the Furret.

Gone was the dark brown body and smushed little face: Rina's body had become lithe and long, starting at a medium brown then fading to tan in evenly-spaced rings along her back; small, triangular ears sat atop her new, round head, and her eyes—still a forest green—looked out above a rounded muzzle.

She stood, twitching, on her hind legs for a moment; she blinked once, twice, made a soft noise that sounded like '_…Ow…_' and collapsed.

* * *

"_Fff…Fffurret…"_

"There," murmured Karen gently, stroking Rina's mostly-still form. "Just a few more minutes, Noah," she assured the other Trainer, who looked at her with a confused look on his face.

"Huh? Oh… No hurry."

"I just want her to get as much rest as she can—real rest, not the apathy of a PokéBall. Evolution is exhausting to a Pokémon. …We'd keep moving, but I don't think I can lift her anymore. She's nearly as long as I am tall."

At least she didn't look like she was hurting any more, I noticed. Pearl had been smiling a few seconds before when she'd been standing beside me; but now she had moved back to stand beside her Trainer, who was busy poring over a yellow, vaguely-Pokédex like device—a PokéNav, I recalled, another piece of Hoenn culture, as it were, that had never quite surpassed the PokéGear and finally the Pokétch that had caught on in Johto.

I didn't mind that we weren't moving, either. It had given me a chance to practice Synthesis, and now I felt as healthy as when I'd come out of the Center's healing machine. It was a curious feeling, Synthesis; like a warmth spreading through your body, a gentle rush of heat and wind, leaving you feeling healthy and cheerful.

"…_Fur…_" murmured Rina, twitching; then, "…_Furret?_" A sound that could have been "_Hm?" "Huh?" _or any indeterminate interjection.

She opened her eyes, blinked twice, and got to her stubby paws, shaking her head from side to side so fast it was a blur.

'_Wow,_' she said. '_That feels… interesting.'_

"Hey, Rina!" exclaimed Karen, smiling, and then embraced Rina as the Furret jumped up to give her a few affectionate licks. "Yes, I bet you feel a lot better now, huh?"

'_Much better!'_ Just like that she moved away from Karen and was in front of me; I took an involuntary step backward as the now much-larger Pokémon gave a Pokémon smile. '_I never realized you were so tiny.'_

'_Ah… I s-suppose.'_

'_I bet I could even carry you around now, Josh. Want to try it?'_

She said it with such excitement, such hope, such a curiosity and a willingness to try it out, that I couldn't refuse her. '_…Sure._'

She dropped to the ground—which took all of perhaps an inch and a half off of her maybe two-foot vertical height—and looked expectantly back at me. After several seconds of thought as to how I'd get on without a lot of needless scrabbling and tearing-out of fur, I heard Karen laugh.

She picked me up and set me lengthwise on Rina's back, with a giggled, "There."

_How did she know…?_

'_Hold on!'_ exclaimed Rina, and I frantically did just that before she took off.

…Well. I suppose I held on "frantically" to begin with, but before long I was holding on for dear life. Furret are not as fast as some Pokémon—they are far outstripped by Linoone, (though they are better able to handle curves), who are themselves outclassed by a Floatzel in water; but they are by no means slow.

But I'm getting off the point.

She was running, if I had to hazard a guess, around twenty to twenty-five miles per hour, and judging from the fact that she still had breath to laugh excitedly I figured she could go much faster were she unburdened. The clearing—and within a few seconds, the trees around us—passed by in a blur of green and brown. In retrospect I am amazed I was able to observe as much as I did, considering that the way Furret run is…uncomfortable, for anyone who decided they'd ride. The whole five feet of her body moved in a small but violent wave pattern, rise then drop, rise then drop, maybe five times a second due to Furret having such astoundingly small paws.

'_Wh-wh-wh-ere---?' _I managed to utter finally.

'_Wherever! We'll get back, I promise!'_

…Wherever. Right. And in the meantime, here we'd be, a Furret with a Chikorita on its back, traipsing through the forest…

…But that sour thought was forced out of my head as we quite suddenly emerged from the trees into somewhere quite different. Rina, surprised, skidded to a halt: I, precariously balanced as I was, was unable to hold on tight enough and slid forward, off of her head. I heard her growl, a little irritated, but it was short lived, as both of us looked up at the ancient buildings and unanimously declared, '_Oh._'

**Nathaniel**

"I need you to go find them, Cumulus."

'_Right,_' Nathan acknowledged, hovering a little ways above his Trainer. '_And it falls to me because I'm a bird Pokémon… How predictable._'

"They took off that way," Noah continued, pointing. Nathan took note, gave a final chirp of acknowledgement, and took off, flying higher into the air to facilitate his search.

He still wasn't sure Swablu was the right form for him, though of course he had no say in the matter. Swablu were too…clean. Too self-righteous. Too obsessive. Nathan liked to think he was none of these. But that he was meant to be a bird Pokémon he did not doubt. If there was one thing that had come naturally to him after his rebirth, it was flying. Though initially he'd been nervous—and even skeptical that he could do it—he'd finally left the nest (Altaria do not push their infants out of the nest as some Flying-types are wont to do), spread his wings, and found himself flying.

Now if only the rest of the flock hadn't been airheads or self-righteous pricks, he'd not have been here, searching for the hyperactive now-Furret and the noble little runt of a Chikorita.

Hmm. Ah well. _C'est la vie. _(3)

As he rose to a decent height above the trees he spotted a group of ancient-looking buildings to his left. Figuring he'd start there, where the two would be easier to spot, he altered his course and kept going.

On his initial fly-over Nathan spotted nothing; but as he dropped to a lower altitude and pulled a u-turn he spotted both of them, looking around, at the very edge of the area, where the trees stopped as though forbidden to grow on such ancient soil.

There was a stone that may once have held import to the people who lived in the buildings, but now was worn down to an indeterminate boulder. Nathan dove at an angle, braked, and landed exactly as he'd intended to upon it.

'…_Seriously,_' he muttered as Josh noticed him and made an attempt at a wave. '_If you guys are going to get lost,' _Nathan continued as Rina noticed him as well, '_then at least make it a challenge for me to find you.'_

'_Uh… Right,' _said Josh a little lamely. '_B…but, Nathan, d'you have any idea where we are?_'

'_Not really. Can't say I care, either._'

'_Nathan, these are the Ruins of Alph._'

There was a pause, as though to let the gravity of what he'd said sink in. Nathan and Rina shared a blank look.

'_You're telling me you don't know?_' The Chikorita seemed surprised. '_Where are you from, anyway?_' Nathan stayed silent, unwilling to answer. '_Fine. Uh, uh, think like the Cave of Origin, or, uh, the Solaceon Ruins. Those mean anything to you?'_

'…_Yes,_' Nathan admitted. '_I'm still not terribly impressed._ _Stay here; I'll go tell Karen and Noah where you are.'_

* * *

**Joshua**

"Rina, don't run off like that again!"

The Furret ducked her head, ears forward in shame.

"I know you're excited and you've got all this energy now, but that doesn't mean you can just go dashing off. I was worried."

That she looked at me as she said that told me there was an unspoken continuation to that sentence.

'_M'sorry, Karen…_'

"Just don't do it again, alright?" she finished, scratching Rina between the ears; the Furret made a sort of _murrr_ing sound and leaned into it. "Oh, you like that, huh?"

"Still no signal," Noah muttered, and I heard Nathan give a chirp of sarcastic laughter.

'_This is Johto. The only place you'll get service for that thing is in the big cities.'_

'_Are you calling us backwoods?' _I asked him, but got no reply except a snicker.

"Hmm." I turned to see Noah putting his PokéNav away again. "But on the other hand, I know exactly where I am anyway."

So did I: and even if I left and never came back—to this day, listener—I'd remember what the Ruins of Alph felt like. Hitherto, though I'd not been aware of it, I'd felt nature all around me; even in the city, I could feel the suppressed force of nature trying to take back the land. In the forest it had been stronger—strong enough that I was finally able to acquire Overgrow—but here, in the Ruins…

Pearl, standing nearby, shuddered, and I could tell she was thinking the same thing I was.

There was no nature here. I could feel the presence of the new forest behind us, but that was all: in front of us, for as far as my "nature sense" went (and I don't know for sure how long that was) there was emptiness and barrenness, as though the very land had died.

'…_Creepy,_' I muttered.

"This place is cool," insisted Noah. "We don't have anything like this in Hoenn… Well, there's the Cave of Origin, but getting in and out of Sootopolis City is both expensive and hazardous." He was smiling, as though the lack of nature didn't bother him.

"I…don't know," Karen said, standing back up as Rina coiled loosely about her feet. "This place… I told you about it before, Noah, the Ruins have a terrible reputation…"

"That's just mythology. Come on, Karen, it's not going to be dangerous or anything…"

I could hear her hesitate—torn between accompanying her new friend or continuing home to Azalea Town.

"You don't know that," she countered.

Noah looked disappointed—and more than a little frustrated. Seeing this, Karen let out a sigh. "Alright…fine. But if we get hurt…"

* * *

The first thing I noticed about the ruins, once we got inside, was that the legends about it being self-lit were true. Back around 1995, when Gold journeyed, the Ruins of Alph had still been a national curiosity, a research site; and though there had been floodlights set up around the exterior of the ruins (their rusting husks still sat there thirty-four years later), there weren't and never had been any such structures within the Ruins themselves. There was a dull orange glow that pervaded the ancient chambers, both sourceless and directionless, as though coming from everywhere at once.

It wasn't sunlight, though; nor, by any definition of the word, was it a natural light. In fact, looking back on it now, I wouldn't be surprised if it had been a psychic light, a projection of the area cast into our minds, and we were all really stumbling around in the darkness. I suppose at this point I'll never know.

The barren feeling continued even here: the soil itself, the ground we were under, was dead: there wasn't so much as a bacterium as far as my leaf could feel. Pearl, a Chikorita by nature, was bothered by it more than I, and had finally gotten up onto Noah's shoulder, snuggling as close to him as she possibly could. I rather felt like doing the same, but Nathan, having been ousted from his spot on Noah, had roosted on Karen, and so I had no choice but to walk next to my Trainer. Rina was still around, stretched somewhat like a tether between Karen's and Noah's ankles; but I would not be taken off guard and get on her back again. The Ruins of Alph were the last place I wanted to be separated from Karen.

I suppose the idea of a tether is apt, because the humans (with heartfelt, rapid agreement from both Pearl and me) had agreed not to go farther than a few feet apart. Though he'd been excited on the surface, Noah was tense down here, perhaps understanding now the fear that Jotoshi gave the Ruins. Regardless of this, he had gravitated, once we'd gotten off of the ramp that lead from the surface to here, toward the first mural he'd spotted.

Karen was a little tenser, an emotion rather ironically offset by the fact that there was a Swablu roosting on her head; she bounced in place, breathing rapidly and looking around as though expecting a Ghost-type or something worse to appear out of nowhere. I couldn't blame her: her poképhobia probably wasn't helping.

"Noah… Please, let's not spend too much longer down here."

"But we just got here," he responded, still poring over the mosaic that looked suspiciously like human script…

I paused, blinked twice, and went over to join him. Karen, making a sound I swear was a whimper, followed me. And I discovered that I could, in fact, read.

My Chikorita brain, it seemed, was wired to understand this circular, eerie script, even though just looking at it I could tell it was almost certainly nearly identical to human writing.

_Rainbow Sun, tracing a path across the sky_

_O great sea, where the silver Moon doth lie_

_while His path is traced,_

_A great dance do You dance,_

_a war fought with nary a lance,_

_a fate "unown" we faced._

_The Three that were lost in the flame,_

_Earth, storm, and sea, we blame_

_Ourselves,_

_Our fate we accept, a death_

_of our land, for in one breath_

_everything wastes upon the shelf_

_Born again, perhaps, one day,_

_but our people are forever to lay_

_in the dust._

_This song we leave,_

_to the future, those unbereaved_

_by the gust_

_Rainbow Sun in the sea now lies,_

_Moon tracing a path across the skies_

_never-ending._

_These runes the last mark of our kind,_

_traced upon this stone, carefully lined,_

_yet free to roam, and never mending_

'_Nathan…_' I muttered.

'_Sounds depressing,_' he answered before I could finish what I'd intended to say. '_Though I think it's…strange that what appears to be the "last" song is so near the entrance._'

'_Nathan, do you realize what you just did?'_

'_I read it, of course_,' he said, irritated. Then, '_…I read it?_' Karen gave a small gasp as he repositioned himself on her head. _'…Then that means…'_

'_This script isn't human, it's Pokémon.'_

'_Why are you so surprised, Nathan?_' asked Pearl, whose voice was muffled because she was facing her Trainer's collar. '_Even I can read it._'

Both the Swablu reborn and I paused, intrigued by this development.

'_Then can you read human?_' asked Nathan after a moment.

'…_Humans can write?_'

Nathan grunted, and I shrugged. That answered that question.

'…_Funny,_ _though,_' said Pearl. '_I've never seen that before, but…_ _I can read it.'_

'_I can't,'_ pouted Rina, wriggling between the human's legs to end up with her huge face beside me, staring up at the mural. '_And anyway…. What's reading?_'

* * *

We stayed in the chambers for perhaps an hour at most, staring at all the murals. Some were poems, like the one I'd read first; others were nonsensical messages that talked about Pokémon not native to Johto, like Relicanth and Riolu. Others gave cryptic and impossible directions, requiring moves that none of the Pokémon present could use. Pearl and I slowly grew more and more uncomfortable in the dead land, so much so that Pearl began to cry quietly and I developed a headache. Concerned, and more than a little chilly, the humans agreed it was time to go. Making a quick stop for lunch at the Pokémon Center where we'd first met Nathan, we continued on down the same path that Karen had taken north.

It was nearing eight o'clock by the time Azalea Town finally came back into view, and the sunlight was all but gone. I heard Karen give a happy sigh and inhale; I did the same, remembering the wonderful smell that pervaded Azalea Town. The Slowpoke were all gone for the day, crawling back into the swampish area south of the town or into the Well at the center of town.

"So… we're heading for your place, right?" asked Noah, whose limp was more pronounced than usual.

"Yeah. I know you're tired, Noah, but it's on the far end of town… maybe another ten minutes or so of walking."

"I can manage." Noah laughed. "Two things I've always wanted to do, and in one day: visit the Ruins of Alph, and meet Raymond Ashlocke."

We were all feeling pretty happy, relaxed in the flower-scented air of Azalea Town; but as we passed the center of town it was very quickly dispelled by the sound of shouting and the clash of Pokémon in battle.

"Dante, Flamethrower!"

"Empoleon, Steel Wing!"

Noah paused uncertainly, looking around for the source of the noise; but Karen's attention, as well as mine, had gone straight for one place.

The battle was taking place in Slowpoke Well.

* * *

AWAKE

In a lost chamber in the Ruins of Alph, they stirred, as if waking up from a long sleep. From doors that ostensibly led to antechambers poured black cyclopic creatures that looked like the runes that dotted the walls all over the complex.

Though it seemed originally that they had no purpose, flying rapidly and with no pattern around the great sealed chamber, very quickly they separated into two groups, splitting roughly in half and taking sides along the room.

They began to form words.

V I S I TOR ? said the left side.

TWO said the right.

SPECIAL POKEMON

F A T E agreed the right, as the four Unown which composed it were so excited from the prospect that they couldn't keep close to each other.

SPECIAL continued the left side, apparently thinking on its own; the formation of the words was slow and thoughtful. SPECIAL LIKE US?

PRIMITIVE! PRIMITIVE! There was a pause, and the Unown moved around some more as the right side continued to speak. HUMANS (a space, as if for a comma, which they did not have) PRIMITIVE CREATURES NOT LIKE ALPH

NOT FIST TIME observed the left, and, squeaking in dismay, an R found its way into the middle of the statement, making it FIRST.

F A T E said the same four Unown, still bouncing around and having a hard time making a legible message. LOTS OF F A T E ON VISITORS

The whole conversation had been silent, though written amidst the squeakings of several Unown as they rushed to hold the conversation; but now even these fell silent as the two collectives pondered their next action. Both at once, the Unown on both sides formed the same message.

IS TIME! SOON WE WILL BE AGAIN With a triumphant squeak and a haughty glint in its eye, an exclamation point added itself to the message, and all the Unown not involved in the message bounced and squeaked as though applauding. A wave of psychic power crashed through the room, and they quieted and stilled themselves, each staring in awe at the words on the other side of the room.

The dead silence in the chamber was the closest they could get to considering the message a dire pronouncement. After holding the message for several minutes, the Unown separated, disappearing into the antechambers from which they'd emerged. Only four of them remained, two to a side, and these two united at the front of the chamber, sinking into the rock wall and spelling one final word.

SOON

* * *

(1)PESES – **P**re-**E**volution **S**urplus **E**nergy **S**yndrome, pronounced "pieces." A disease common in certain species of Pokémon, including Sentret, Mankey, Pidgey, Rattata and Slakoth, wherein the unevolved Pokémon's body, close to evolution, begins to produce far more energy than previously, due to the nature of the evolution. Such unevolved Pokémon are unused to such vast amounts of energy, and so experience unpleasant side-effects, including loss of muscle control and pain in certain large muscles. It is most common in the aforementioned species, though all species of Pokémon that evolve can develop it.

A Pokémon with PESES will continue to suffer from it, increasing in intensity, until evolution. It is harmful to intentionally leave unevolved a Pokémon with PESES, and as of the 2002 National Charter revision, it is a punishable offense to leave a Pokémon with PESES unevolved, and a charge equivalent to second-degree manslaughter is issued to anyone whose Pokémon dies to the complications of the syndrome.

A Pokémon that does not evolve, such as Dunsparce, is of course incapable of contracting the syndrome.

A counterpart syndome, PEAS (**P**re-**E**volution **A**pathy **S**yndrome), has been reported in most cases of Vigoroth and Munchlax evolution.

(2)Bounce: It should be noted that while I attempt to realistically and canonically render Pokémon growth patters and the workings of moves as accurately as possible, _the move Bounce does not exist in my canon._ It is a natural action that can be learned by many Pokémon as an aid in battle, but is not an attack in and of itself.

(2) _C'est la vie_: French. "That's life," or, more literally, "Such is life."


	15. The Hunter

A/N: Chapter 15, and as my profile states I start school in two days, so I won't be able to keep writing as freely as I have on these last few chapters…

Well. Enjoy, and I promise I won't give up on this, even if everyone else does. Ha. Ha.

Pokémon and all related official material, including locations and species, belong to whomever it is they belong to. I own the characters and the plot only.

**Chapter XV – The Hunter**

There are two things you learn if you spend any time at all in Azalea Town. The first is that Raymond Ashlocke is very good at what he does, and gets a lot of business because of it.

The second thing is that there absolutely, positively, _NO BATTLING IN SLOWPOKE WELL._

As a matter of fact, it wasn't just a rule that Ren told us (not that he had much to worry about, since I had no Pokémon and Karen for the most part didn't go near them), but had been adopted into the town's official charter, after the cutting and selling of Slowpoke tails back in '95. That it was a law was also displayed by the fact that there was usually—and I stress _usually_—some form of security personnel standing guard to make sure no battling took place.

This was not usually.

Noah was still looking around, not quite sure where the voices were coming from. Karen and I already knew, of course, and while I hesitated for a moment, she took off, heading straight for the entrance to the Well. I took off after her, and after a shouted protest, I heard Noah come after us as quickly as he could.

…Have you ever been to Azalea Town, listener? I think I asked you that before… Either way, I've never told you about Slowpoke Well. You're probably imagining a hole in the ground surrounded by rocks, a little wooden roof and a bucket, right? That's the ordinary definition of a well. Slowpoke Well is not like that: it's actually a sort of cave down under the center of town, half filled with water, where most of the Slowpoke that wander the town make their home. There is a stone gate surrounding a steep staircase, and it is down this staircase that one goes to enter the well.

"You're not bad: a Charmeleon that can go toe-to-toe with my Empoleon."

"Don' try to sweet talk me, you rogue!" A sharp Fioran accent—and judging from Karen's intake of breath I figured it had to be Dominic.

"Feisty…" The other voice was smooth, almost cocky; this adjective was followed by a chuckle.

Karen's dash had slowed to a tiptoe, and very slowly we continued down into the semi-dark (there were lights, but they were spread fairly widely), and we reached the bottom before we realized there were no more stairs.

Standing in front of us, back turned, was the Charmeleon's Trainer; Karen had described him to be as having a bandana, but it was gone now, and I could see he had darker-colored hair—maybe brown—that seemed abundantly fluffy. I could also see he was shaking—though whether it was exhaustion or simply fury I could not tell. Standing in front of him was his Charmeleon, who I _could_ tell was exhausted.

"Don' you patronize me, either, you scumbag!"

"Foul language," sneered the other, who was standing where there was no light: I could make out only his silhouette, tall and thin. His Empoleon also seemed worn out, but I couldn't tell for sure; proud creatures like Empoleon don't show their weakness if they can help it. "Didn't your mother teach you not to talk like that with a lady about?"

"Lady!?" Dominic cast a glance over his shoulder, and shouted, almost warningly "Rookie--!"

"Aqua Jet!" snapped the other as Dominic's concentration broke. The Charmeleon, awaiting an order from his Trainer, got none, and was met head on with a charging Empoleon. Dante flew back into his Trainer, who collapsed from the impact.

"Damnit, Rookie, get out, this isn't your fight!"

"Oh, unfortunately, Mister Keaton, it _is _her fight. And the young man's, too."

"Karen…" Noah murmured behind us. "What's going on?"

The other gestured expansively. "Come, my dear, I challenge you, you can't back down."

"I can," Karen counted warily, taking a step backward. "Inside city boundaries, I can back down from a challenge…"

"Kar—agh!" Noah shouted, and the two of us spun in place to see Noah on the ground, with a Weavile's claw to his throat. His walking stick spun away and fell into the water to the side.

"I don't think you can, this time," suggested the man very quietly.

"Damnit, Karen," muttered Dominic again, pushing Dante—now insensate—off of him. "Why'd you have to show up now?"

"Fate," called the man. "Like you, she smells of…mmm…fate."

The Empoleon made an imperative bark-like sound, beginning to waddle over toward us.

"Gah!" grunted Dominic, pulling another PokéBall from his belt. "I've ne'er been a great believer in fate, just skill." He looked back at Karen, and then at Noah. "We're in this together, rookie, but don't get in my way. Go!" he cried, and the Ball burst open to reveal a Pikachu.

My eyes were drawn to the mouse Pokémon for a second—I had the nagging feeling that I recognized it—but Karen called me forward an instant later, and I had to focus instead on the fight.

I'm warning you now, it wasn't much of a fight. You still want me to tell you? Fine…

"Thunderbolt!" ordered Dominic.

"Razor Leaf!" Karen snapped.

"Aqua Jet," said the man, almost bored. The Empoleon dashed forward, surrounded by a veil of water, that tore through my leaves as though they were nothing; and with reflexes that belied its size the Emperor Pokémon twitched to the side to dodge the Thunderbolt. As it approached at an astounding velocity, I had time to think wryly that I seemed to have a knack for getting knocked out by oncoming Pokémon.

**Noah**

Karen shrieked and dove out of the way as the Empoleon kept coming, ramming into Josh and sending the little Chikorita flying as though he weighed nothing, landing with a pathetic _thump!_ against the wall next to the staircase; reflexively, as though he were Pearl, I cried out and tried to reach for him, but was reminded very suddenly that there was a claw up to my neck when a sharp "_Weave!_" sounded in my ear.

The Fioran, whom I would learn later was named Dominic, cursed again, ordering his Pikachu to launch another Thunderbolt. This one was dodged as easily as the first. By that time Karen had managed to pull Rina's Ball from her belt; desperately, and furiously slowly, I began to reach for my own belt to let Nathan or Pearl into the fight, but once again was reminded as the Weavile's claw just barely pricked my neck.

"Alright," I wheezed, bringing my hand back up. "Alright, I get it."

Rina, amazingly, seemed able to hold her own against the Empoleon—at least, better than Josh had. After she'd seen the Chikorita's unmoving form half-submerged in the Well's water, she had shrieked in fury and begun to fight much like she had just before her evolution, rushing and attacking furiously without regard to herself.

It wasn't doing as much damage as any of us hoped, however; being that Empoleon were part Steel-type Rina's attacks might have been doing more recoil damage than the damage she actually inflicted. Regardless, at least for a moment, the massive Pokémon was caught off-guard. Dominic, seeing this, ordered his Pikachu to perform a new move: Volt Tackle.

The mouse Pokémon dashed forward, body erupting into a massive ball of electricity. The room, which had previously been in semi-darkness, was lit up as though it were still daytime. The opponent Trainer was finally revealed: a tall, gaunt man with slicked-back violet hair, an eyepatch, and an outfit that reminded me suspiciously of some kind of uniform, black with stylized yellow lines running down the sides of the sleeves and leggings.

Then the Pikachu impacted the Empoleon, and suddenly _it_ was the source of the light. The mouse Pokémon bounced off of the Emperor Pokémon; seeming a little dazed, it stumbled back over to Dominic, who dropped to one knee and caught it as it fell forward.

The Empoleon seemed to stand paralyzed for a moment, as though it could not believe what had happened. Then, with an earth-shaking, crunching noise, it fell forward.

I could no longer see the man's face, but his eye was glittering furiously in the sparks his Pokémon was still throwing off. "You…" He made some sort of gesture; I heard the whistle of air being split by something sharp, and the Weavile dashed off, my belt in its claws.

"Wh---no!" I yelled. Both Karen and Dominic looked back at me at the same time, saw the Weavile and ordered their Pokémon to attack. Rina dashed forward, as did the Pikachu…

And then something happened that I couldn't quite see; maybe Rina tripped, maybe the man had a third Pokémon somewhere that had used Confusion, but suddenly she was dashing the other way, straight for Dominic, who was too stunned by the next sight to get out of her way.

The Pikachu was in the man's hand, struggling and sparking furiously, but none of it seemed to hit him. The light cast by the electricity revealed a manic grin on his face; then, from some hidden pocket he pulled a device, a sort of red hexagon, attached it to the Pikachu's stomach; and suddenly he was holding onto a three-dimensional hexagonal shape with the Pikachu suspended, still struggling, in the middle.

Rina and Dominic were tangled on the ground; without my walking stick I was as good as paralyzed; and the Weavile still had my Pokémon. Karen, the only one in the room who _could_ do something, did.

She let out a scream and ran at the man, seeming to forget that there was a Weavile beside him that could easily cut her down. But the man gave no such order; setting the Pikachu down, he turned back to Karen in time to grab her by the throat and, despite his thin frame, lift her into the air, just high enough so that her feet weren't touching the ground.

Dominic finally got Rina off of himself, but then the Weavile, having left my PokéBalls by his Trainer, cornered him and Rina in a matter of moments. We were all doomed, just because we'd been curious enough to investigate—

"Let her go."

The new voice was imperative and cold, and it had every intention of being obeyed. Still prone, I tilted my eyes up to get a fair, if upside-down, view of the newcomer.

Raymond Ashlocke.

Even though I'd never met him, had never been to Johto before in my life, I knew him. I'd seen his picture in the national newspaper; heck, he'd been on the news a few times before. Even if I hadn't seen those, though, I would have known him, because he looked just like Karen. He, too, was tall and thin, with clear blue eyes and long black hair that came to his shoulders.

"And if I don't?" sneered the man, still holding Karen aloft.

"…_Ninetales._"

There was silence already in the chamber, aside from the sound of Karen struggling to breathe and the slow trickling sound of the water; but at that dire pronouncement, the uttering of a name, the silence seemed to deepen.

"You wouldn't dare," said the man, though he sounded unsure. "The girl's in the way."

"_Ninetales._"

"Believe me, I dare. Unhand my daughter. Now."

The Weavile seemed torn between protecting his Trainer and keeping Dominic down, though I doubt it would have mattered, because the Fioran was as surprised as the rest of us. It was this hesitation that turned the tide in our favor, as when the man didn't answer, Raymond continued, "Myst…"

"_Niine…"_

"Flare Blitz."

"_Taaaales!"_

And then I saw something I will never forget, as long as I live. Though what I knew of Ninetales was limited, I knew that for the most part when they used a Fire-type move the fire emerged from their muzzles. For Flare Blitz, however, something quite different happened. The fox remained in place, its mouth opened in a snarl; and then its tails, all nine, burst into blue-hot, then white-hot, flame, and this flame spiraled out from the Ninetales and toward the man, seeming to avoid Karen. The Weavile threw itself into the flames in an attempt to protect its Trainer; and then…

…And then… Honestly, I can't tell you. I must have blacked out or something, because the next thing I know the Ninetales was standing over me, expression unreadable.

"_Ninetales,_" it said dismissively, and walked away. I sat up as well as I could to see her walking toward Raymond, who himself was crouched over Karen.

"This's yer'z," grunted a heavily-accented voice, and I tore my gaze away from Raymond to see Dominic, holding out my walking stick. I stared at it dumbly for a moment, still not quite sure what had happened; but I grabbed it after I heard him clear his throat. He kept his hand out, and after putting the stick in my left hand I reached out with my other, and he helped me back up. The bottom looked wet, but the top felt dry—had Dominic dried it, or…?

He stood a good foot or so taller than me, but after I'd regained my balance he and I continued to stare at each other, myself because he was more than a little intimidating; his bluish—aqua? teal?—eyes stared back at me, stormy, betraying the neutral expression on his face.

"Huh," he grunted again, and turned away, toward the exit; but as soon as he approached the exit, I heard Raymond bark a command.

"Stay."

I turned toward the Breeder and heard Dominic do the same. He had not moved, still on his knees next to his daughter, with the Ninetales standing like a sentry beside him.

"Come here."

There was still an imperative flair to his voice, the voice of a Trainer that knew he would not be disobeyed. Unable to deny him, I did as he asked.

"Is…is she…?" I muttered dazedly as I approached.

"She's alive," Raymond stated. "But in no condition to travel. Myst," he added, and the Ninetales bent down, grabbed something in its mouth, and brought it to me.

"M…my belt…" My breath caught. There was a Ball missing. Pearl's Ball. "I…I'm sorry I couldn't help…"

"He escaped with the Pikachu and one of the Pokémon on that belt. You two," Raymond continued, standing, with Karen in his arms. "Come with me. You're staying at my house tonight. Talk to no one on the way."

So saying he turned and walked past us; Dominic stared after him with a furious expression on his face, but followed. I trailed, not wanting to be left behind.

Though I had not seen it, there remained in the Well one piece of evidence from our battle. There was a pile of ash on the ground, and viewed from a certain angle it looked an awful lot like a Weavile…

* * *

I collapsed into the first chair I spotted, stick clattering to the floor. That I had almost died had just occurred to me, and I drew my arms up to my chest and rocked myself, assuring myself it was fine, I was okay…

Dominic found the recliner across from me, on the other side of the coffee table. His expression was twisted into a scowl, hands balled into fists; he kept looking back toward the door, as though itching to dash back outside and chase the man who'd gotten off with his Pikachu. Raymond had gone upstairs, Rina trailing unhappily behind him; Myst remained downstairs, standing at the entrance to the lounge room, preventing us from leaving.

We sat there, in still more silence, for several minutes. I could hear Raymond moving around upstairs; he seemed unable to keep still. Finally, he came back down, his face ashen and his expression grave. Myst stood aside to let him into the lounge; he took the couch, and Myst, to my surprise, lay down in front of me, not quite covering my feet. I could feel her warmth, and the serenity she radiated began to help calm me down.

"My Pikachu…" Dominic started. _My Chikorita,_ I added silently, staring down at the single Ball still on my person.

"Is gone for now." Raymond sighed. "The Well is a natural maze. There are too many paths to take; he will slip past us no matter how hard we try."

"Is that all you're gonna say!?"

"That's all I can say, at the moment, aside from the fact that you are an outstanding battler."

"Wh…what about Karen?" I interjected.

Raymond's eyes flicked to me. "…She's currently upstairs in her room, curled up into the smallest shape possible, hugging tight to her Furret." He paused. "She's pyrophobic. I may have saved her life, but her mind…" He shook his head. "Her Chikorita is lying comatose in my own room, on the best medicine I have."

"Sh…shouldn't he be taken to…?"

"A Pokémon Center? Yes, but not until the morning." He paused again. "As for Karen, it may be awhile before she calms down… The best thing for her right now is to have a Pokémon nearby to focus on. Especially one that seems such an obvious caretaker as that Furret.

"…We haven't been introduced," he added momentarily. "Raymond Ashlocke, Breeder. You can call me Ren if you like."

"N…Noah. Noah Maxwell."

Both Ren and I looked then to Dominic, who was still looking back toward the door. He took notice, stared back at the Breeder for a moment, then said "…Dominic."

Ren nodded, standing back up. "Sleep where you like. We'll talk tomorrow." He passed back by me, stopping in the doorway to stare back at Dominic. "And don't try to leave the house."

"Hmph," huffed Dominic sourly. "What e'er you say, Mister Fancy Breeder."

* * *

**Armando**

Several hundred miles away to the east, in Sinnoh, it was approaching three in the morning. Most of the populace was asleep; indeed, it seemed (though in reality it was not so) that in Hearthome City there wasn't even a hint of movement along the darkened streets.

On the southern end of town there was a large house—not large enough to be called a mansion, but too small to be called just a plain house. It approached "mansion," however: finely wrought gates leading to a pristine lawn; the brickwork siding was in perfect condition, the windows were clean, glistening a bit in the forming dew.

Upon the second floor balcony stood a man, hands clasped behind his back and legs spread as though to brace himself. He had been standing thus for several hours, staring stolidly forward, silver-colored hair gathering moisture much like the grass on the yard below him.

Beside him, though he didn't seem aware of it, stood a Riolu, mimicking his position and trying to emulate his steely stare; but it was obvious the little Emanation Pokémon was tired, its eyelids drooping and every few seconds suppressing a yawn. Eventually it seemed to fall asleep on the spot, falling to one side and onto the man's leg. The human looked down, surprised.

"Izmayel…? _Yukos'ka ir?_" (1)

The Riolu mumbled incoherently against his pant leg. Smiling, the man bent down and picked the little jackal up.

_/Sleep/_ he suggested.

"_Ay,_" agreed the man gently, taking the Pokémon back inside.

_/Sad/_ Izmayel emanated as they continued through the darkened house. _/Mother/_

"Shh."

_/Arman/_ came another voice as he entered the hallway leading to Izmayel's nursery. The man paused, looking behind him, to see a grown Lucario, a female.

"Azmada," he greeted her. (2)

_/You have been up all night…/_

Arman looked away, his expression remaining neutral but his eyes speaking volumes.

Azmada sighed, then stepped forward. _/Let me take him. He is my brother/_ When Arman didn't make a move or offer a reply, she continued, _/And enough beating yourself up. You are a bounty hunter. You are as proficient with Aura as any half-way decent Lucario. But sometimes you will be outwitted/_

Gently, she reached up and took Izmayel into her arms. Arman didn't resist her.

He stayed where he was, motionless, as Azmada carried her brother down the hall.

"Azmada…" he called, eventually. She stopped, glancing back at him with a single crimson eye. In English, he continued, "I knew it was only a matter of time before I was outwitted… I had simply hoped it was not a big mistake, like yesterday's." His English was nearly perfect, a lilt and a bit of a nasal emphasis on vowel sounds the only thing that betrayed his Orran origin.

_/Such is fate/_ Azmada told him.

Her aura was a calm, if tired, blue. Izmayel must have been having a happy dream, because his was flaring into a bright green. (3)

"You're not angry." It was not a question.

_/No/_ He heard her continue on, into the nursery, but distance and line of sight were no barriers to telepathy. _/And Izmayel is young yet. I do not think he will begrudge you/_

"…Why?"

_/It is useless to be angry over things which you cannot control. I will save my anger for another time. Perhaps it will save my life/_

She was silent after that, sitting in the room with her brother to make sure he was comfortable. Besides, the conversation was finished; Arman could read that much from her mental "voice."

He was tired, then, as though realizing Azmada did not begrudge him for her mother's death had also been a sedative. He shook his head, making his way through the darkened house to his room and laying on the bed, not even bothering to undress.

He was nearly asleep when his Pokétch rang. He jerked back to consciousness, tapped a few buttons on its surface, and the videophone monitor on the other end of the room lit up.

They must have looked equally as haggard to each other; the caller's face was tight with worry, and even from here Arman could see he was tired.

"Raymond…" he breathed.

"I know it's early… I didn't wake you up, did I?"

"No, but…" Arman stood up and walked over to the monitor crossing his arms. "Even if you had… There is something plaguing you, too, this night?"

(Such strange syntax was a side effect of his exhaustion, where his Orran grammar began to bleed through his otherwise spotless English.)

The Breeder didn't respond right away, instead sighing and looking away from his calling device.

"I think…there's someone after my family."

Arman raised an eyebrow. "To be honest… I would be surprised if there were not. You are famous, even here in Sinnoh… Famous people make enemies, intentionally or not." He paused. "But… what evidence do you have to support this?"

"Less than a month ago, my nephew was killed by drunk drivers. I've had a look at them, a talk with them, and while it's true they were drunk…" Raymond pursed his lips thoughtfully. "Well, you understand, I'm sure, living with Lucario… But they didn't _feel_ like they'd done it on accident. I mean… There was enough of a proud expression on the driver's face that told me he wasn't sorry, even though he professed it."

"_Mutid'so'a… _I am sorry for your loss."

"And tonight…" He recounted to Arman the events that had transpired only a few hours ago. "I've got Karen up in her room, and she's sleeping now, thank God… Noah and Dominic are down in the lounge sleeping, and I've got Josh on medication. Everyone's hurt, one way or another, except for myself… But Dominic and Noah…"

"_Ay._ It is a terrible think to have your Pokémon stolen." He frowned thoughtfully, then sent a telepathic message to Azmada, _/Go wake Aruya. We have a voyage to make/_

_/…Very well/_

"I am sure you called me because you…require my assistance," he continued aloud, and Raymond nodded.

"I'll pay you, whatever you want…"

"Payment?" Arman shook his head. "I think not. We are friends, Raymond, though it took a long time for that to be so… Besides, consider this recompense for Ecruteak City, all those years ago."

The Breeder seemed surprised, then looked away, as though recalling the events himself.

"I will come as fast as I can. I have my suspicions about the attacker, and if he was who I thought he was, timing is of the essence. I will see you when I arrive."

* * *

**Rina**

She was no more than a child herself, I realized.

Karen had pushed me off of the bed almost as soon as the man had gone; as well, she'd pushed off several things that looked like Pokémon but weren't, really soft things that didn't seem to do anything. Stymied, I'd lain on the floor next to her bed, amidst the soft not-Pokémon, listening to her whimper.

She wasn't as brave as I'd thought, nor was she as strong. She'd tried so hard to uphold that image, or so it seemed to me; and Josh had always spoken very highly of her. But now she was lying alone, curled into a ball, a lost, lonely kit afraid of the storm that raged outside the den.

She quieted after what seemed like ages, and I propped my forelegs up on the edge of her bed—my new body was so convenient for getting to new places!—and stared at her. She was facing me, but not looking at me, looking past me, or perhaps through me, unaware of the world around her.

I purred softly, trying to get her attention. She didn't move, but muttered quietly, as though in response, "I'm scared."

Resolute now, I pulled the rest of my long body up onto her bed and lay myself down next to her. She shivered, not from cold but from fear, and mumbled "Hot…" so I moved away a little, situating my muzzle directly across from her face.

She was still staring through me, but as I purred softly again, trying to calm her as though she were a Sentret crying for its mother, I saw sense return to her eyes, if only for a moment; but in that moment she reached forward and caught me somewhere along my midsection, and pulled me close, like she had when we'd first come into the room.

I made noises. Calming noises, like sighs and purrs; noises that couldn't be put into "words," as Josh called human-speak. Karen didn't speak either; but as I continued my soft noisemaking her breathing slowed and her eyes closed. I nuzzled her softly, and she shuddered once, relaxing again afterwards. The man who'd brought us up here looked in then, and I looked out at him angrily—I'd just gotten her to sleep, he had no right to look in and maybe wake her up like that!—though he just smiled softly and closed the door behind him as he left. I huffed at him after he left, then extricated myself carefully—and painstakingly slowly, since my new body liked moving awfully fast—from Karen's arms, curling up into a more comfortable position beside my Trainer.

I made sure that my head always stayed near Karen's, so if she ever needed anything I'd be the first to hear.

I didn't—and don't, really, to this day—consider myself to be terribly brave, but at that moment the instincts I'd never felt before—the instincts common to motherhood—welled up inside me and I knew, without a doubt, that I'd do whatever it took to keep Karen safe.

* * *

In the semidarkness several miles away, he slowed, finally coming to a stop, and looking at the Ball in his hand. It was the same as any other ordinary PokéBall, but to him it held…

What did it hold? He took a closer look. Releasing the monster now would be bad, as it would probably flee… So instead he gave a careful whiff, a smell.

His eye boiled with rage, and were it not for the sturdy construction of the sphere in his hand it would have been crushed.

He'd grabbed the wrong PokéBall!

* * *

(1)Orran Glossary:

Yukos'ka ir: "What are you doing here?" (_Yoo – Koz – kah Ear)_

Mutid'so'a: An Orran expression of sympathy, a sort of condensed prayer, "May the dead find their rest." (_Mu – tihd – so – ah)_

(2)Lucario names: Lucario are born knowing their names, and as a Riolu it is the first thing they can telepath. The name of a Lucario always contains a single "z" sound; furthermore, female names always end in a vowel (Uruzi, Azmada), and male names a consonant (Yonaz, Izmayel). "Y" is treated as a consonant unless it at the end of a name, in which case it is considered a vowel (Orzy) and part of a feminine name.

(3)Aura Colors: For your reference, and so I have a concrete reference for myself,

Blue = calm

Green = happy

Red = angry

Purple = irritated/suspicious

Orange = livid

Brown = confused/embarrassed

Yellow = excited

Indigo = thoughtful

Rose = charmed/romanced/"in love"

Additionally, there are gold and silver auras for the major and minor legendaries, respectively, that take the place of blue and indigo.

White and Black do not manifest as pure aura colors, but rather affect the brightness/dullness that reflects the quality of the individual's soul


	16. Failure

A/N: This chapter is actually almost identical to its first draft, with the exception of a few words in different orders and the combining of a few paragraphs. That's a first for me, at least since getting a beta reader.

Pokémon and all related official trademarks do not belong to me. However, I lay claim to the human characters and the personalities of the Pokémon characters.

* * *

**Chapter XVI – Failure**

**Nathaniel**

'_What._'

Noah continued to stare at me guiltily, and it took every bit of self-control I had not to fly over and peck his eyes out.

'_Stolen._'

He cringed every time I said something—hah, as though I sounded threatening.

'_You got her stolen._' There remained deathly silence for one minute more, and then, at the top of my tiny lungs and in the least-pleasant voice possible, I called him something I really don't feel like repeating. In fact my tirade continued for several minutes, berating Noah and telling him how stupid he'd been to even get into a situation like that, and—

"Oi!" The back of a hand made contact with my body and sent me sprawling; disoriented, even when I fell off of the table and into the air—momentarily—I was so out of sorts that I couldn't tell which way was up until I hit the floor. I heard Noah gasp, but beyond that he did not protest. "Shut up, will ya?"

With a few flaps of my wings I was back on my feet, glaring up at the Fioran teenager with every bit of malice I had…

And he stared me down. I almost never got stared down. But he did it like it was no problem. Slowly, painfully, I looked away, earning a snort from Dominic.

"Gosh, s'always the same with you Swablu," he muttered disdainfully. "Think you're always in the right, think you've got the right to berate anyone…" I looked back up in time to see him glance back at Noah, who was looking away as though he didn't want to pay attention. "I think he feels bad enough without yer annoying chirpin' givin' him a headache."

'_Yeah, well—eh?'_ There was something gripping my wings. I looked back as well as I could to see a purple fluff-ball and the edge of a red multi-faceted eye. '_Let me go, fluffy._'

The Venonat's eyes flickered—was it blinking?—but it said nothing; with me still in its grip, it hopped back up onto the table and set me back in my previous position. With another few blinks, it dropped me and hopped off the table, standing beside Dominic. I stared at it for a moment longer, then looked back up at Dominic, who shrugged.

'…_You're all idiots,'_ I declared, and then, not wanting to be around them anymore, I flew out of the room.

I had gotten perhaps halfway down the hallway, passed the doorway to the kitchen—I could see the fridge—when there was suddenly a large gold-colored curtain in my way. Caught off guard, I didn't have time to brake, but the curtain caught me, and I fell straight down, landing on something firm and warm, and furry…

A little dazed, I lay motionless for a moment before sliding down the rest of the way and hitting the floor. I blinked, and then there was a Ninetales standing over me.

Holy crap, that Ninetales was huge.

'_Do not fly indoors. It is dangerous._'

I opened my mouth to snap back, and found I couldn't. I settled for a subdued '_…Fine._' With as much dignity as I could muster, I righted myself for the second time in five minutes.

She stared at me for a moment longer. _'You too, are a human…'_

'_Nathan.'_ Lying and sarcasm seemed bad things to do, so I was honest.

'…_How ironic,'_ said the Ninetales, but didn't elaborate on the subject.

'…_How's the girl?'_

'_Still sleeping.'_

'_And the runt?'_

Her eyes hardened, just slightly. I coughed.

'_S-sorry. Josh?'_

'_Upstairs, in Raymond-sama's room.'_ She gestured with one of her tails. _'I suggest you pick a place to be, and be there. It is almost time for the Day Care to open. You will be in the way.'_

'…_Fine,'_ I said again, and began hopping away, toward the stairs. I could feel the Ninetales' eyes on me the whole way.

* * *

The door to Karen's room—at least, I assume it was Karen's room, because I could see the conventions of your standard teenage girl's room—was slightly ajar, but I did not go in—not only did I not feel like it, but I could hear Rina murmuring quiet encouragement to her Trainer. Now was not a good time.

I continued on down the hall, still moving in short hops, unable to walk as I'd have liked to do. From one of the rooms in front of me—I could tell little about it except the fact that it had blue paint—emerged a Pichu…followed closely by another.

God. Of course, the Breeder would have that many Pichu about…

'_S'cuze,_' said the one in front, who looked extremely depressed. The one behind seemed only mildly depressed, but made up for it by looking extremely worried for his companion.

'_What's up with you?_' I asked before I could help myself.

'_Cirrus,_' mumbled the first.

'_Our big sister,_' explained the second. '_Well…she's not really our sister, but we all call her that. She went missing a few days ago. The same day Karen set out._'

'_I miss her,_' continued the first absently, as though he'd not heard the second.

'_Sorry,'_ said the second. '_I'm Niklaus. He's Isaac,_' and here he gestured to the first Pichu. '_What's your name?'_

_Human names…_ I mused to myself. Aloud, I answered '_…Trainer calls me Cumulus.'_

I saw Isaac eye me a little curiously, but didn't seem to be able to work up the nerve to say anything.

'_I'm a Swablu,_' I told him shortly. He nodded, looking back down. Niklaus' ears flattened sadly.

'_He's not normally like this… He took Karen leaving hard enough, but when Cirrus disappeared on the same day… And now, even though she's back, since she's so…depressed...'_

Isaac gave a depressed little huff, and if it weren't for the fact that I, like anyone with any common sense, was annoyed simply by the fact that he was a Pichu, I think I'd have started to care a little.

But I didn't.

'_Get over it,' _I told him shortly, then continued, still not sure where I was going.

'_Hey!'_ Niklaus called after me. '_W-well… You didn't have to be so mean to him!_'

I ignored him.

'_That's Mr. Ren's room! He told us not to go in, there's a very sick Pokémon in there. Hey!_'

I hadn't yet met the man, though Noah had talked about him while explaining, in simple terms (Ugh! How I hated when he assumed I couldn't understand complex ideas!), the events of the previous night, but I had yet to really form an opinion on him. But he seemed awfully stupid to leave the door to his room open and then to trust blindly that his pack of curious Pichu would stay out just because he told them to.

The room was, surprising compared to the rest of the house, rather dark: the bed had dark green bedsheets, though they looked nearly black because the curtains on the window were drawn shut. The dresser and desk were both of wood with a dark finish, and the computer upon the latter was either off or in power-saving mode.

I paused. Now that I thought about it, there was only a single source of light in the room: a solar lamp on the end table, pointed over that part of the bed. Though I knew what had to be there, I flew up anyway, and found Joshua.

I had thought Pearl beaten up after our fiasco of a battle with Falkner, but he looked worse. There was what appeared to be a tiny splint on his right foreleg; his forehead was discolored, as though bruised. The entire right side of his body was either bruised or covered in scratches, though they didn't seem too deep.

'_Holy hell, man,_' I muttered in spite of myself. '_…Maybe it's a good thing I didn't get to take part in that fight, if that's what happened to you…_'

'_Nnnnthn,_' he sleep-mumbled. It sounded suspiciously like…

Though I'd had no intention of staying, the fact that I'd almost heard my name kept me rooted in place.

"_Chikorita, Chiko,_" he muttered then, just nonsense, sounds with no meaning attached. I turned to go.

'_Prrl… Karen._'

I turned back. He twitched, a pained expression on his face.

'…_Hurrrts.'_

'_Well, you're not going to help it any by moving,_' I muttered, hopping back over to him. He seemed just as insensate as before, though, in the way of unconscious people, he seemed somehow aware that there was someone else in the room. Indeed, as though he'd actually heard me, he stayed still after that, aside from his somewhat pained breathing. I turned to leave again, annoyed that I'd been detained so long…

_I suggest you pick a place to be, and be there. You will only be in the way._

The thought flitted through my mind, along with _It'd be a bad idea to get that Ninetales angry._ I ignored it, and would finally have left then, except that someone else came through the door.

It was not Noah, nor was it Dominic. The man looked similar to Karen, so I assumed him to be Raymond… Or "Ren," as he apparently preferred.

"Hey?" he started when he saw me. "…Oh, yes, you're Noah's other… What're you doing here?"

'_Leaving.' _I hopped off of his bed and started past him.

"Already? …Not too worried about Josh, then."

'_Nope._'

"You're sure?"

Damn it, what was with this guy!? He must have spent a lot of time around the Ninetales, because he was having the same effect on me that she had!

"That's what I thought," Ren continued as I hesitated, reaching down and picking me up with one hand. I found myself facing him; his expression was a little morose. "Noah told me a little about you… None of the other Pokémon seem to like you much. Why is that?"

'_You're not worried about me,_' I reminded him. '_You were here to check on the Chikorita, not give me a counseling session._'

"Ah…" Ren said thoughtfully. "…Got anything else to say?"

'…_That you're pinning my wings and making me very uncomfortable.'_ To illustrate my point, I tried to move my wings.

"Well, I can't have you flying through the house… It's not safe. Honestly, you shouldn't be out of your Ball… But I can understand why Noah would let you out. He just lost one, he'd want to make sure the other one's still around…"

He sat on the bed, and leaned away from me and toward Joshua. I could tell, from the vantage point that was his lap, that the Chikorita wasn't just lying on the bed cover, but was on a sort of raised, soft Pokémon bed. The Breeder released me to reach over and turn the lamp off, though I had only just thought of spreading my wings when he said, almost as if on reflex, "Stay here."

…Damn. Again.

"No, on second thought… Go back down to Dominic. I'll be down in a second."

'_Not Noah?'_

He didn't answer, but I hadn't really expected one.

'_Fine._'

* * *

**Dominic**

Dominic Keaton scoffed. "I'm not yer errand boy."

The Swablu on his shoulder, seemingly better-behaved than it had been earlier, gave an assenting chirp.

"Noah'd do it wi'out a hitch. Why're you askin' me?"

Ren sighed. "Listen, Dominic… Noah just had his Chikorita stolen. I don't think he'll want anything to do with anyone else's for awhile. I have business to attend to, and Karen's still…" He hesitated. "You're the only one I can send."

Dominic chewed on his tongue for a moment, eyeing the Breeder warily.

"I can't take care of him here. I can numb his pain, I can keep him asleep, but for the real healing to take place Josh needs to go to the Pokémon Center."

The Swablu fluffed its wings as though irritated. Despite himself, Dominic chuckled. He stuck out a hand, took the Chikorita's PokéBall that Ren was offering and stuck it on his own belt. (He certainly had room for it, he mused disgustedly). The Chikorita himself, sleep-mumbling, was handed to him next.

"Be careful how you hold him," Ren admonished. "The splint should keep his leg set, but don't jar him too much or you might rebreak it. Chikorita don't have the sturdiest of skeletons."

"Aye. Now… Why am I taking this Swablu?"

"Because I know Swablu. Since Noah felt compelled to tell him exactly what happened, including how helpless he was. Swablu are too proud to take blame themselves, so he'll dump it back on Noah." The Breeder shook his head. "…Long story short, it's best to keep Cumulus away from Noah until he calms down, himself."

"Fine. Anything else?"

"No… Now get going; if I'm right, the sooner Josh gets back to normal the sooner Karen will, too."

* * *

**Joshua, withheld from the Listener**

_Bad, bad, bad… He'd done poorly, he'd done so poorly…_

_He had failed… They had all failed… They were all going to die, he knew it…_

_Karen… Pearl… Even Nathan…_

_They'd stuck their noses in where they didn't belong… If even Dominic couldn't win…_

"…sh…"

…

…

_It hurt so much… Why did it hurt? Of course, he'd been stolen, his PokéBall probably left in the hands of his Trainer… Had she survived? Of course, he'd survived, or he wouldn't hurt…_

'_Holy hell, man…'_

_What a contradiction… Only Nathan would say something that stupid. Nathan… Had he been captured too? Stolen? What had happened to Noah? Why did he…?_

_He hurt…_

'…_not going to help…'_

_No. No, of course you wouldn't, he thought wryly, you never do anything unless it suits you…_

_He'd done so poorly…_

_What about the Pikachu? He'd never found out what happened to it…_

_No, not it…_

_It had been a she, hadn't it? He hadn't been able to tell for sure… But he'd heard its voice, and its voice…_

_No… Two voices…_

"…nything else?"

_She had two voices… Why…?_

'My name's…'

_What was her name? He knew her name, he knew _her, _he was positive…_

_If only Pikachu weren't so common…_

"_Man, 'chus reproduce quickly."_

_It was on the tip of his tongue…_

"…ot your Poké…?"

"No… Ray… cke."

_It degenerated into nonsense after that, an amalgam of everything Joshua had experienced over the past few weeks; Mew leering at him, then floating away, giggling; Nathan, staring at him, asking if they could start over, then proceeding to ignore his own advice; Pearl, telling him she couldn't hit him because they were friends… Dominic, the man, the Empoleon, and the Pikachu…_

_The Pikachu…_

'_Cirrus!'_

Joshua opened his eyes, closing them again when the bright light of the Pokémon Center room filled his unprepared irises.

It had been Cirrus.

**The Listener**

He has been silent for awhile now, staring thoughtfully off into the setting sun. The Listener does not question him, does not rush him; it is his tale to tell, albeit in many parts and from many sources.

'_I can remember clearly what I dreamed,_' says Joshua at last. '_But I won't recount it. There are things you just have to keep to yourself._' His face hardens. '_That's a lesson I learned the hard way… But that's for later. There was one thing I realized while I was sleeping that I will tell you: The Pikachu that Dominic had been using was, though I wouldn't learn for awhile how she'd been caught, Cirrus...'_

**Joshua**

'_How long have I…?'_ I started before I realized that nobody was around. Karen was not pressed to the hall window—as I assumed she would be. After a moment, thinking along this path made me realize that I was actually in a Pokémon Center. What kind of thief brought stolen Pokémon to a Pokémon Center? He'd be caught the instant he tried to check them in…

The man didn't strike me as the stupid type. That could only mean…

'_I wasn't stolen,_' I finished aloud, breathing a sigh of relief. I was relaxed only for a moment, because I only knew about myself: what had happened to the others? Karen? Pearl?

I couldn't move, I found to my frustration. I was awake, and had control of my facial muscles, but the rest of my body was numb. I suppose it was for the better, since I had to have taken some serious damage… Worse than Pearl.

My head hurt, I realized suddenly. It hurt terribly. Had this been a mistake? Was I not supposed to wake up?

This question was answered almost immediately as the door—within my field of vision, of course—opened with a whoosh and a Blissey waddled in.

'_Oh, oh, oh dear,_' she said as soon as our eyes met. '_No, no, no, dear, you shouldn't be awake yet.' _She waddled over to me, fiddling with something out of my sight. '_No, no… You're much too injured to be awake yet. And if the rumors are anything to go by, so's your Trainer. You are Karen Ashlocke's, aren't you?'_

I was already starting to feel tired again. I tried to fight it off. '_Y-yeah…_' I tried to shake my head, but it took too much effort. '_K-Karen… what happened to Karen… I-is she…'_

…

* * *

I opened my eyes to see that there was a Charmeleon in front of me. Waking up with a Charmeleon in your face is fairly scary under any circumstances, but when you are a mostly-immobilized Grass-type it is enough to scare you out of your skin.

'_Ha._'

That was it. That was the extent of its reaction to my fear. It laughed at me.

The Charmeleon stepped back, seeming to take care not to turn around until his tail flame was well away from me. Under the fear that had brought me instantly awake again, I couldn't help but feel a little grateful.

'_You're awake._' He paused; his voice was gruff, the kind of voice you expected from a Charmeleon. '_Don't expect anyone to pick you up for awhile.'_

'Why?' I breathed. '_…Karen?'_

'_Dominic told me, before he left… You're the one that belongs to the girl, right? She's gonna be fine, eventually. Afraid of fire, or so I heard… I bet you understand all about that.'_

Then this was Dominic's Charmeleon. Funny, how polite he came off, given the attitude of his Trainer…

'_I bet it's a mystery to you,_' I responded after a moment, still eyeing him warily.

'_No.'_ Dante shook his head. '_…I get it. It's like my being afraid of water. It's part of your species.'_ Here he was silent for a while, bringing a claw up to his chin as though thinking. Presently he moved away and sat down in the middle of the floor—so as not to burn anything with his tail, I suspected. '_You know,_' he continued, eyeing the reflective tile beneath him. '_You know, I've been after a fight with you since that tower back in the other city. Couldn't tell you why._' He shrugged. '_Don't worry, though… It'd take the fun out of it to attack you now. Not to mention it'd get Dominic in trouble._'

Something that had been floating around at the back of my mind since he'd started talking finally made its way to the surface. '_You…don't sound like him.'_

'_Eh?'_

Before you start berating me, listener—that Pokémon speak in ideas and not in words, and therefore can't have accents—know that I'd done research on it a little while before my death, that the cries of the same species of Pokémon from different regions did in fact sound different. Thus they had "accents." I expected, Dante being owned by a Fioran, to have this accent bleed through into his speech. It hadn't.

'_Your owner is…_' I paused, trying to find the right idea. Heretofore I had never had to worry about naming regions, as Johto was "this-land" and Kanto, when I'd thought of it, had been "neighbor-land." But I had never had to refer to anything as foreign as Fiore, and I had no words for it. '_…he…is… uh. He's not from around here, his voice…'_

'_Oh, right._' He chuckled. '_You picked up on that. That's because I'm from…'_ He paused. '_…No, that's not going to work, is it…?'_

'…_I think we're having the same problem,_' I told him quietly.

And I suppose, while it's on my mind, that I should explain it to you as well, listener. Even though I'm sure you already understand it… I don't know. In case you ever want to pass it on to those who don't understand.

Pokémon don't speak in words. Words are a human convention, evolved by humans in an attempt to grow more civilized. It worked, at the cost of their instincts, and thus they had to enslave Pokémon—and indeed, early records indicate that the first domesticated Pokémon were treated more like slaves—to help them survive. Pokémon, with the exception of Chatot and certain psychic Pokémon, speak in ideas—in sounds that convey a message, but one that is implied.

Oh… That's confusing. Let's see if I can make it clearer.

Humans have words to represent everything. And while it's really impossible to provide an example just out of the blue—and in any case, if you pass this on, an example's bound to lose its effectiveness—Pokémon do not. …How can I explain this without human conventions? Uh… For example, all the times heretofore I've mentioned a Pokémon Center, or Ren, or even Karen, in speaking, I've sort of shaded it to make it easier to comprehend. What I actually said was something like "human-healing-place," "black-haired-gentle-one," and "person-I-will-protect," or… uh, or something similar. (1)

…Sorry. I'm getting far removed from the point.

Eventually Dante and I worked out that what he'd been trying to say was Kanto—but since that was his home region, he'd have called it "this-land," which I would have interpreted as Johto.

'…_Yeah. He didn't actually bring any Pokémon from his own region… He came to Kanto first, and got me, then he caught Venonat on the way west, to New Bark Town.' _(This had been another pause to find the right ideas, but I've removed it)

There was silence for awhile. Then Dante stood back up. '_I really shouldn't be here, anyway… I managed to sneak past the Blissey. I'm healthy, but of course, she doesn't really understand that…_'

He moved toward the door.

'_Nice to meet you,_' I called after him drowsily.

'_Hah… You, too._'

* * *

**Raymond**

Business was unusually slow for a weekday; so slow, in fact, that he had done something he'd rarely had to do before, and had started working on paperwork during business hours (normally he saved it until check-in/check-out hours had ended). He was in full view of anyone who decided to come in, at the check-in/out counter…. But since no one seemed to be coming in or going out, he felt relatively safe.

Ren had just finished signing something when he felt a nudge on his leg. He looked down. "Myst? …Oh…?"

It was indeed Myst, but was had drawn his attention was sitting squarely between her front paws.

"An Egg…?"

The Breeder leaned down and, very carefully, raised a hand into Myst's field of vision, then lowered it to the Egg. Bad things happened when you touched a Ninetales' Egg without her permission—even if that Ninetales normally trusted you with her life, as it were.

The Egg was warm, but Ren hadn't expected any different, being the Egg of a Fire-type.

"How did you…?" He looked back up at the Ninetales. "I didn't even know you were carrying it, how did you…?"

'_Ninetales._'

He looked down stroked the Egg once, gently, then looked up at her again. There was also the question of why she was bringing it to him: Ninetales were usually more than capable of taking care of the Egg themselves until it hatched. He voiced this concern.

'_Ninetales._'

"Oh… Now you'll have to give me more than that."

'_Ninetales,_' she said again, looking toward the door. He looked around, confused, until a moment later, when the door opened, and Dominic Keaton stepped in.

"…I waz goin' back to the Pokémon Center ta pick up Dante… You want me to pick up Josh as well?"

Ren stared at him, then back down at the Egg, thinking.

"Can you wait a few minutes?" he asked finally.

* * *

She had been crying; that much was obvious. Crying, and undoubtedly cursing her own weakness; but the most important thing was that she was sane.

"Karen?" Ren asked finally, having stood outside his daughter's room for several minutes, listening to her breathing slow and the frustrated sniffling to cease.

She looked up at him, depressed; she was hugging her knees to her chest, and Rina was coiled up next to him; the Furret's ears twitched and she looked up at him with a slight growl.

"I messed up," Karen muttered. "And… Noah came by earlier…" She took a deep breath. "…Pearl, and Dominic's Pikachu… And…Josh…"

"You did the best you could," he told her.

"…It wasn't enough." Rina uncoiled and dropped to the floor, standing lengthwise in front of her Trainer. Ren was upsetting her, and he realized it; but even so, he dropped down to the Furret's level and tried to calm her down. "I'd have died, if you hadn't… Dad…"

Rina seemed to hesitate as Ren reached out a hand. "_Furret…_"

"It was so hot…"

"I know," Ren admitted after a long pause, dropping his hand when the Furret turned away from him and climbed back onto the bed. "I'm sorry… But there wasn't time for anything else."

He stood back up. She wasn't looking at him any more; her gaze was off to the side, into the corner of the room.

"Josh is ready to be picked up. Dominic was going to get him, but I think it'd be better for both you and your Pokémon if you went and picked him up yourself."

She nodded, though Ren suspected she hadn't fully understood him.

No one said anything for a minute; and then suddenly Karen had flung herself at him, and he had laid his arms gently around her, and she cried into his chest, just like when she was younger, and scared of Pokémon.

"Thank you, Dad, thank you…"

"It's all right now, dearest, I've got you now…"

Attracted, perhaps, by the sound of Karen's voice, a crowd of Pichu and Pikachu had gathered at the doorway to her room, looks of concern on all of their faces. Isaac hopped in place, little paws stretched out and tears in his eyes, petitioning desperately for Karen to pick him up so they could cry together.

Behind them, and so still he could have been a Rock-type, Nathan watched the scene unfold.

* * *

(1)Speaking in ideas: Here's an unashamedly technical version; granted, I'm no master in linguistics, but this will have to do.

Pokémon speak in descriptors that are common to all species, generally related to abstract principles. As such, instead of nouns Pokémon have terms that they associate to the object. Perception plays a large role in this; if a Pokémon thinks of a human as gentle, kind, and caring, then they would be more likely to associate that human with descriptors such as "nice" than a Pokémon who had been abused by that person (who would generally describe her as "angry," "nasty," and "cruel". As such, while Pokémon can understand human words due to instinctively getting the message of what the words mean, a barrier of sorts prevents them from learning the surface meanings – possibly due to differences between how human minds and Pokémon minds work.

**Note, readers, that the above note was not written by me, but by my beta.**


	17. Nemesis

A/N: I screwed up. I was going to get this up yesterday in honor of the Western release of _HeartGold & SoulSilver_ but I got sidetracked...mostly by _SoulSilver_.

But either way, this story's finally going to be continued, after quite a long time. Sorry for the break...if you care.

Note: I started this story using Platinum Pokédex standards and, for all intents and purposes, Generation II's effects on Johto (as opposed to Generation IV). I'm going to keep it that way: just because HG/SS are standard now does not mean I'm going to change the way my story works.

So if things don't match up with HG/SS--and I should know--don't complain. That's the way this story started, that's the way it'll end.

* * *

**Chapter XVII - Nemesis**

Nathaniel Cruse did not remember his mother.

He had grown up in Jubilife City, with his father, in an apartment on the top floor of some building that he couldn't remember clearly, except that it wasn't very well taken care of. A few blocks down was the Trainers' School, and a block further was the TV Station. Those places were the best known, perhaps, in Sinnoh, and it was to these that most people visiting the city came. Nathan's building was out of the way, relatively small, and, indeed, somewhat dirty on the outside.

Nathan didn't see his father much. When he was older, and knew more of the legal system, he would often wonder how the man had gained custody of him. Albert Cruse worked a lot and got almost nothing for it, underappreciated and depressed. He wanted to spend time with his son, but was always so tired… He had eventually resorted to less legal methods of obtaining money, but he was less successful at that than he had been at his previous job.

One day, Albert Cruse did not return from work, and Nathaniel was left alone. Perhaps, if he'd waited, his mother would have eventually come to claim him, but what good would that have been? He'd lived with his father since he could remember. His mother would be like a foster parent.

He was a teenager by then, fifteen, too young to get a job. Without a parent or other guardian to sign the necessary paperwork, he could not become a Trainer. He attended school when it suited him, and evaded the officials when it didn't. Nathan was good at hiding from people, good at blending into his surroundings, almost like a Kecleon. He was one of the masses, an average Joe.

He realized that if people couldn't—didn't—see you, there were things you could do. When he turned sixteen, he didn't bother getting a job.

Nathaniel Cruse became a thief.

**Joshua**

When I woke up, Karen was there.

I had time to gasp the first syllable of her name, and then I was caught up in a massive hug, my cousin's arms wrapped tightly around my body and her face pressed against the side of my head. She was crying. For a reason I didn't understand, I began to cry as well.

"Y-y-you're o-o-kay," she stammered eventually, hiccoughing. "J-Josh, I… I… If I'd lost y-y-y-you, I…."

'_What happened?'_

But she didn't explain yet. She stood there with me in her arms, rocking back and forth, crying her heart out.

"I-It w-w-was all a m-m-mistake…" _Hic. _"I-If I-I h-hadn't b-b-bothered going to the W-W-Well…" _Hic_. "E-e-everything w-w-went w-w-wrong…"

Something deep inside me changed. What it was, I didn't immediately know; I could only tell that something, now, was fundamentally different about me. I pressed my head into her cheek, beginning to cry in earnest again as a terrible weight of grief emanated from my cousin. It was there for a moment, and then it was gone, as I realized what had happened.

Reflexively, hastily, I thought, _No, I'm human, I'm not a Pokémon!_

Karen continued to rock from foot to foot, oblivious of what had just happened. We cried together for a time, and no more words were said. It was not until Karen was carrying me home, steps slow and dejected, that I learned what had happened after I'd been knocked out the night before.

The news of Pearl's being stolen, and then Cirrus', felt like a terrible twofold blow to my chest. I had just managed to stop crying from before, but before I knew it, more tears were falling from my eyes.

* * *

The day was bleak. A flat, ominous gray sheet covered the sky. There was no rain, though there were flashes of cloud-to-cloud lightning, and the sound of thunder rolled in from far away. Humidity made the air heavy. A dreary silence filled the whole of Azalea Town.

I had lost, gratefully, the terrifying, short-lived empathy I'd experienced at the Pokémon Center, but despite this I could tell that the Ashlocke living room was filled with tension and more than a little depression. Karen sat cross-legged on the end of the couch closest to the hallway, with me in her lap and Rina curled protectively beside her. Chikorita skin is not overly irritated by our tears, but Karen's eyes were still inflamed from crying, and she kept her head down, her long hair keeping her face mostly hidden.

Noah sat across from us, his eyes uncharacteristically hard as he stared down at Nathan's PokéBall, which he was rolling mechanically from hand to hand. The Swablu himself sat upon his head, his own serious expression making him seem a colorful, fluffy, yet imposing, hat upon Noah's head. Dominic was nowhere to be found.

The doorbell rang. No one moved, but I could hear Ren come downstairs and open it. He held a conversation with whoever was at the door, too quiet for me to hear; there was the sound of the person outside coming inside, and the door closing. There was silence for a minute, and then Ren entered the room, Myst trailing serenely behind him.

No one asked him who had been at the door. No one spoke at all. Noah had stopped passing Nathan's Ball back and forth, but other than that hadn't even spared the Breeder a glance. He sat next to Karen, and his daughter leaned silently into him; he draped his arm around her shoulder and kissed her hair softly. Then he looked up and spoke.

"Now," he said. "I know how you've got to be feeling… But you can't let this get to you. Especially you, Noah." Ren hesitated. "I… Before you call me out as being harsh, then you should know that I went through this sort of thing myself, with my starter Pokémon."

"Did you get it back?" croaked Noah after several minutes of silence.

"Yes, I got him back. It's unlikely, I know…" Ren paused again: he'd always been one to be very careful with his words.

"But don't think it's impossible. This is going to sound childish, but... Whether you believe something is possible or not does actually help determine whether it is. Always remember that you can, you _will_ get Pearl back."

A sudden blur of motion off to my right caught my attention, and I turned my head to see Dominic Keaton standing outside the sliding glass back-door, his usual scowl on his face and Dante trailing behind him. Tersely, he knocked on the glass.

Ren stood, leaned past Myst, and opened the door. He said nothing, but the look on his face--and, or so I hoped, on mine--asked the question for him--"Why not use the front door?" Naturally, he answered.

"It's business hours for you, inn'it? An' yet your door's shut, Open light's not on... I cannae just walk in the front door, people'll accuse me o' somethin'. Besides, I know you've not submitted a thing to the police abou' last night--and I'm not gonna question that, 'cause if yeh had it'd only slow me down. But there are people who were ou' last night, recognized me as one o' the kids walkin' home with Mr. Raymon' Ashlocke, lookin' all beat up and tired." He huffed.

"Yer gate was no problem, by the way. Hopped it. The Pokémon in the enclosure didnae so much as spare me a second glance, either. I think ye oughta increase yer security..." He glared around at everyone, but finally settled on Ren again. "...Especially wi' bastards like that violet-haired nutjob las' night around."

The fact that everyone in the room wore either a stony or morose expression finally seemed to dawn on him. He pushed his way past Ren, stepped over Myst (whose eyes narrowed dangerously as he did so), and began to rant.

"Yer no' still all upset about all that, are yah?" He scoffed, looking back and forth between Noah and Karen. "Look, he stole one a' mine, an' I'm up an' ready to get after 'im! The longer ye sit here mopin' the farther he'll get, yeh've gotta start after him now!"

Noah looked up at him, confusion evident behind his eyes. I could tell he saw the sense in what Keaton was saying, but there was anger there, also, at the inconsideration the Fioran was showing for bursting in here and interrupting his grief.

There remained a tense silence in the room for several minutes. No one moved.

"He's right," said Ren finally. "More than anything right now, if you want to get her back... You need to get going." His eyes flicked to Karen. "I'm still worried about you... and your mother's not gotten a chance to come home since you've been back. I haven't even told her what's happened..." He nodded, as if to himself. "I still think it's best that you keep going. Aaron will still be here any time, if you're really concerned about getting the Hive Badge."

But it really took about another hour for Karen to get ready to go again. Dominic left ahead of us, and Noah, walking stick passing apprehensively from hand to hand, waited by the front door. But soon enough we left: walking westward, we found Dominic waiting by the entrance gate to Ilex Forest.

"'Bou' time ye got here," he grunted; then without so much as another word he turned and entered. Silently, we followed him in.

* * *

**Myst**

Back at the Ashlocke home, Ren had returned to his office. After a quick peek in and a sniff around the front door, which revealed to Myst that her Trainer had done exactly what she had wished with the Egg, the Ninetales trailed upstairs and to the room Ren normally occupied: except that now there was someone else inside it.

The doorway was open, and she froze as soon as she saw the man sitting easily on Raymond's bed. A Lucario had stood off the end of the bed, stoically staring out the door; but as Myst appeared she stepped forward silently, raising one of her forepaws in a warding gesture.

"Peace, Azmada," the man murmurred quietly, gesturing at the Lucario; then he stood, and Myst's suspicions were confirmed.

'_Arman,_' she said. The half-Orran man's face split into a nervous grin, and he nodded.

He stood taller than Ren, and broader: both were changes from the last time she had seen him. He was dressed in what appeared to be a one-piece jumpsuit, a color scheme modeled after Lucario. A glance at his hands--uncovered, rough, a little scarred--told her that he had been doing hard work in his life--even fighting.

'_You...are different,_' Myst observed.

"Well met, my dear," said Arman Dymo, bowing slightly. The Lucario beside him did not mimic her master. "My... You have grown into a beautiful fox, my dear: and I see that you have become well-acquainted with the powers of the fox-kind. Your Aura is invisible to me, your mind closed; and as such I must express my sincerest hopes that all past grievances have been forgiven?"

Myst said nothing.

"I understand," said Arman finally. "Your kind are long-lived, and do not let go of your grudges. I suppose my absence has done little to prove my honest intent to you."

'_You...are not the same Lucario,_' Myst said finally--though not to Arman but to the Aura Pokémon beside him.

_/...No/_ said Azmada finally. _/My mother...told me of you. Azur Uruzi, as she would be called by my people: but she would be simply Uruzi to you/_ Azmada paused. _/She...is dead/_

'_...I see. I am sorry to hear of her passing.'_

_/Were it not for your species, we wouldn't even have asked you/_ blurted Azmada suddenly, then looked away as though she'd not meant to broadcast the thought. Even Arman seemed to have picked up on it. A squeak of "_Rio!"_ from the far side of the bed spoke of another Pokémon that had also hear the outburst.

'_That is to say..._' the Lucario continued shakily, the hoarseness of her voice telling Myst how little it was used, '_...I...have no love for your kind. My mother lost her powers after being attacked by a Ninetales--unprovoked, unchallenged. My ability to manipulate Aura is self-taught. I simply...do not want you to think that any emnity I bear you is personal.'_

She lapsed back into telepathy.

_/But.../_ Azmada took a breath. _/...I would also wish that you bear my master no ill will/_

Myst waited a moment before answering. '_Wish what you like, Azur--'_ Here the Lucario's eyes widened, apparently surprised to hear the Ninetales use the correct title '_--but for all the time you have spent with him I know more of your master than you. I will make my own decision on that account._'

Finally, grudgingly, the Lucario nodded.

A Riolu had clumb onto the bed during the exchange, and now stood beside Arman, who had sat down after Azmada's outburst.

_/My brother/_ said Azmada, indicating the Riolu, who was scrutinizing Myst with more clarity and depth than she'd seen from a baby Pokémon in a long time. /_Izmayel/_

'_Lu Izmayel,' _said Myst. The Riolu blinked, stared at her for another minute, then sat down, leaning into Arman's side

_/Hi/ _he telepathed quietly. Myst inclined her head slightly, muzzle parted in a small smile.

'_A greeting to you as well, little one,'_ she murmurred. Then, to Azmada, '_Your master has learned the art of telepathy, but understanding my speech is still beyond him. I would have you translate.'_

The Azur blinked, and then cast a glance at Arman, apparently passing on the message. The human nodded.

'_You have yet to hear exactly what transpired last night. I cannot tell you with any detail: and all of those whom you may have learned it from are now traveling westward. Despite this, I believe I understand what is going on, and why, last night, two Pokémon were stolen.'_

"I as well believe I know the man who committed the act."

Myst's eyes twinkled. '_Then...we will help each other. You know some; I know some. Together, we may unravel the mystery before more lives are lost.'_

**Noah**

"Oi..."

A hand planted itself on his shoulder, and Noah Maxwell stopped, looking back and into Dominic's serious face. On his other shoulder, Cumulus gave a sleepy chirp.

"What?" he asked. Keaton jerked his head to Noah's left, and together the two Trainers looked in that direction. There was a clearing a few yards off, and because of the inky darkness of Ilex Forest even with the overcast sky ahead it seemed bathed in light. Karen was standing at the far end of it, facing almost directly away from them, and--Noah readjusted his glasses--in front of her was a small marble monument. A tombstone? He couldn't tell from this distance.

Karen's head was down, and he could see her mouthing words, though she was far enough away that what she said escaped him. Was she praying? And why would there be a tombstone all the way out here?

He began to take a step, but Dominic's arm shot out almost instantly and blocked him. "Don't disturb her."

"Wh... Is she praying, or...?"

"Noah..." Dominic chuckled. "Ye aren' from Johto, are yeh? Well, no more am I, but at leas' I took the time to study up on her culture a'fore arrivin'."

"Hoenn," he said, somewhat sulkily.

"Ah, righ'. Yeh're all about the tropics an' enjoyen' life, aren' you? Johto is'nae like that. The people are traditionalists; got their own particular religions an' such." He paused. "I imagine this's one of 'em."

"You don't know?" asked Noah.

"_Blu,_" said Cumulus shortly.

"No' the specifics, no." He paused. "But I know the basics. See, Johtoshi put a lot of stock in their ancestors an' such, and that includes Pokémon that've died that belonged to their family." He paused, tilted his head to the side. "Eh? There's another one there, too."

Noah moved to the Fioran Trainer's other side and discovered that he was right: there was a second tombstone to the right of the first. As he and Dominic stared, Karen turned from the first and knelt at the second.

"_...Chiko." _Noah jumped and nearly cried out at the sudden voice, but when he looked down he saw only Josh.

Carefully, the crippled boy knelt down and stroked the Chikorita's leaf. "What's with you, Josh? Your Trainer's over there..."

"_Chikorita,_" he said, looking as close to over his shoulder as he could and shuddering. "_Chikorita...Chiko, Chiko..._" He glanced up at Noah's face for a moment, and then looked away, adding, in almost an apologetic tone, "_...Chikorita._"

The tiny Pokémon stepped up to his knee and nuzzled at him. Noah smiled weakly--ignoring the lancing, phantom pain that lanced through his heart as he thought about Pearl--and quietly muttered a thank-you.

When he looked up, Karen was in front of them again, hands clasped in front of her and head down.

She swallowed. "S-sorry about that." She half-turned her head, glancing back at the tombstones. "W-we can go now. I had to..." She stopped, blushing. "W-well... Let's go, anyway."

**Nathaniel**

He was so absorbed in his own thoughts that it took Nathaniel Cruse several seconds to realize he was being spoken to.

'_Aren't you curious? Or don't you at least have some kind of cultural jab?' _Joshua spat the last part.

Nathan blinked, and now that he was more aware of his surroundings had to take a moment and relearn how to move to keep balance on Noah's shoulder as the boy walked.

'_Curious about what?'_ he asked blankly after a moment. Then his brain caught up with him. '_And what's with your tone?'_

'_Well, you've insulted each of us so far except your own Trainer. I figured it was only a matter of time before you badmouthed Johto itself.'_

Nathan rolled his eyes. '_You know, if you didn't make me out to be such a jerk, sometimes I wouldn't have to be such a jerk._' He paused. '_And...I still don't know what you're talking about. I was thinking.'_

He could not see the Chikorita from where he was at--though from the sound of it he was nearly on level with Nathan. Perhaps he was being carried, or was on his own Trainer's shoulder. Regardless, the next thing he heard from Joshua was a childish '_Hmph._'

'_Yes, I'm sure that comes as a surprise to you,_' he drawled, on a roll now. '_I thought you'd be happy if I didn't insult you, and yet it only makes you angrier.'_ He paused. '_I wonder... Does that make you a hypocrite?'_

'_...What did you say!?'_

The two Trainers snapped at their Pokémon at the same time, producing a jumbled cacophony that would be difficult to transcribe.

"Stop arguing!" continued Karen. "I don't know why you two don't like each other, but get over it. Now's not the time to be fighting each other."

Nathan said nothing, and neither did Joshua.

"Apologize," prodded Karen.

'_Me? I didn't start it!'_

Dying to comment, Nathaniel nevertheless held his tongue.

'_You're right,_' sighed Joshua after a moment. '_...Sorry, Nathan._'

But the apology barely registered to Nathan: and he didn't care enough to offer a reply. In the silence, his mind drifted back to where it had been...

**Four Years Ago, October 17th, 10:00 PM; Jubilife City, Sinnoh**

It was raining. This being October, it was a cold rain, and it seeped through his jacket and chilled him to the bone. Visibility was poor; and the rain caused the already blurred light from the streetlamps to reflect off of the road, making it hard to tell, especially in the distance, where the sky and earth met.

The stoplights continued their robotic pattern—green, yellow, red, green, yellow, red—adding a color element to the glare on the road; all this, despite the fact that there were no cars on the road.

"There he is! Heading toward the intersection of Fifth and West!"

Nathan ran. He'd been running. Running was nothing new to him; he'd been running for two years now. Usually, he got away.

He heard, over the relentless hissing of the rain impacting the sidewalk, the sounds of the policemen behind him. For a moment, he was glad of the rain; it prevented them from tracing his scent, because not only did the rain wash it out, but it prevented them from using their precious Fire-types, their Arcanine and Growlithe.

There. A dark patch, caused by a faulty streetlamp; there was an alley beside it, and in the darkness he would not be seen entering it. As he approached it, he prepared to dive—

"_Glam…"_

Nathan skidded to a halt, the sound biting through his focus and robbing him of his intentions. Wet and miserable, the Glameow padded up to him, pitiable expression on its face.

"Nngh," said Nathan.

He had to get away! His mind screamed at him over and over, _Leave the damn cat! Leave her! You don't want to get caught now, do you!?_

_But,_ he argued with himself. She looked so pitiful…

Empathy is not a strong point in a thief. Up until this point it had not bothered him; but this one instance, here, in the rain, with this bedraggled Glameow…

One of the best jobs of his "career," and he'd screw it up over some damn waterlogged cat...

Something massive hit him from behind—a policeman, obviously, since he'd been standing still for so long. The Glameow, scared of the sudden motion and noise, fled. His forehead hit the sidewalk with a disturbing _crack!_ and the world was filled to the brim with silence and pain.

* * *

**Joshua**

Naturally.

I squirmed around in Karen's arms so I was facing straight again, and not looking toward Nathan. What was rather, I have to admit in retrospect, a childish "this-isn't-fair" look crossed my face. I apologize, I do everything Karen asks... And then he just ignores me.

And he has the gall to insist that I'm responsible for his attitude!

I wished, and not for the first time, that I could be affected by my own scent: but no, Chikorita can't be relaxed by the scent of a Chikorita. I settled down to wait it out, and tried to expand my nature sense again...

And was immediately overwhelmed.

Each of the mainstream regions--that is to say, the ones that conform to National League rules, eight Gyms, a set of hyper-rare Fire/Grass/Water Pokémon usually reserved for "important" Trainers, that sort of thing--has, by some twist of fate, a forest to it, often close to the resident Professor's own town. Kanto's Viridian Forest is a man-made thing, the trees all planted in rows, and all of them oak and other temperate trees. Hoenn's Petalburg Forest, as I've heard, is too small to be much more than a grove; Sinnoh's Eterna, while it has its dark spots, is largely similar to Viridian, even down to the species of trees (though thankfully not the species of Pokémon: that would be too boring.)

None of them can hold a candle to Ilex Forest. The place starts not ten feet from what is legally considered Azalea Town's western boundary, and when I say that it starts, I mean it goes from nothing but grass and concrete to thick, inky darkness on all sides, thick undergrowth that essentially ate up the path, instantly. The canopy was thick, the leaves that composed it a dark green so solid that little light made it through. It was light enough to see by, but only just. Compared to the current level of light, the gravestone clearing had been lit by floodlamps.

The trees here were all old and thick and full of life, and as I closed my eyes and reached out their silhouettes burned against the inside of my eyelids. Brighter than the trunks shone the leaves, which filled the space above me thicker than stars on the clearest night. The undergrowth seemed lit up as well, though compared to everything else it was dim.

And yet, despite the suddenness of it all, it relaxed me. When I thought back on it later, I realized I should have been surprised or even unnerved. I had been overwhelmed, yes: but only for a moment, but then I simply...accepted the feeling. Even if there was no sunlight here, there were plants that attested to its attentions, and it made me happy.

At least I had that moment before it all went to hell again.

Karen loosened her grip for just a moment, attempting to get a better hold on me; I was lowered perhaps all of two or three inches. It seemed a fairly routine action.

Something went _whumph. _I tried to look around, wary now, but could see nothing. Then Karen let out a gasp, and I felt, for a moment, her (and, my stomach told me, myself) begin to tumble backward.

_Oh-crap-oh-crap-oh--_

Something grabbed me and violently wrenched me from Karen's still-loosened grip, and begin to rush back the way it had come. Acting on instinct, and more terrified that I would have liked to admit, I bit down hard, which was not terribly effective. I tasted nothing but dry bark, and my jaw instantly began to protest. The rest of the next few seconds passed by in a dark-green blur.

"Karen!" I heard one of the boys yell from a distance. I couldn't tell who it had been, and at the moment I didn't particularly care.

'_Stupid...thing! Argh, let-go-of-me!'_

"That was a Nuzleaf!" snapped Dominic. "They aren' native, what--!?"

"Cumulus, go, get him back!"

There followed a very disorienting few seconds in which I was handed off from the creature that held me to much larger, human, hands, which held me roughly around the middle: not a very comfortable position for a quadruped. I simply hung, stunned, winded, and, for the moment, half-conscious.

And all of it had happened in less then seven seconds.

I looked up, struggling to breathe through the human's iron grip, and saw enough of the man's face to recognize the attacker from the previous night.

"Got you now, boy," he breathed harshly, grinning. His breath hit my eyes, and I flinched. "I can smell you."

'_Get out of my way, you...!'_ Nathan, for once, was stopped in the middle of a tirade. _'H-hey, you...! Let go, I can't...move!'_

"Dark-types never fight fair," continued the man grinning, as I struggled desperately to free myself. "But that's what makes them so appealing. I'm the same way. I aim to succeed, and to do it by whatever means necessary!"

I was still being held firmly in his hands, and so I couldn't look back at all and see what the humans were doing or even what had happened to Nathan.

"Bring that one back, too, Nuzleaf," the man barked next. "How helpful," he added condescendingly, apparently to Karen and the others. "You're giving me just the Pokémon I need." He grinned again, wider. "But then, Nemesis never fails twice, and after last night, after I failed to grab all of them..."

He turned, rapidly, and I struggled for a moment but was unable to gain any leverage at all in his infuriatingly tight grip. Growling, I pulled my leaf back, preparing to Razor Leaf him, but Nemesis simply rearranged his grip just _so_ and managed to get a pincer hold on my leaf, too.

"No, no, runt, I assure you, that's the last thing you want right now," he said, oozing false sweetness.

Then he began to run. I growled and tried to lash out at him with my meager teeth and my stubby little forelegs, but only succeeded in giving myself a headache with the former (it was rather like somebody pulling hard on your hair) and hitting air with the latter. The fact that I bounced with every step he took did not help. Finally, helpless, I screamed.

'_Kaaareennn!' _No, no, no, Nemesis was _not _going to make off with me, too!

"Josh!"

"Cumulus!"

'_I said--let go!'_ Another voice grunted--the Nuzleaf's?--and then, '_Ha, ha, what, can't reach me now? Too bad!'_

Nemesis swore, but ran faster. I was crying now, realizing I was helpless, completely helpless, and I'd be stolen just like Pearl and Cirrus...

Once again, things happened very quickly, and this time rather than trying to think it through I acted on instinct. Nemesis let out an uncharacteristically high-pitched "_Whoa!"_ and pitched forward. The old human catch reflex took over, and he let me go to save himself from the fall. I twisted in the air, shot off the Razor Leaf I hadn't gotten in before, and waited to see where it would hit--

There was a _thwock_! followed by an almost musical twanging sound, and I felt my left entire left side stick to something. I struggled for a moment, and found that I was just as helpless here as I had been when the thief had been holding onto me. This had to be a web of some kind: of course, there were all sorts of Bug-types in Ilex Forest...

Beneath me, the web vibrated again as Nemesis face-planted into it. Unnerved, now, and obviously not thinking straight, he flailed: but the web was stronger than his panic and he ended up trapped just like me. For a moment I was breathless, exhilarated--he didn't have hold of me anymore! All Karen had to do was get over here, and I'd be home free.

'_Ha,_' I cried, blind with relief, and stuck out my tongue for good measure. '_How's that for success, Mr. Never-Fails-Twice!?'_

Very slowly, something dripped down past my face. The unpleasant nature of my predicament caught up with me.

Chikorita do not pale, but if I could have I would. I looked up as high as I could, and then let out a very scared, very quiet, '_Help?_'

The Spinarak paused, seeming to think this one out. Then it clicked its mandibles together and said in a final sort of way, '_No._'

And I screamed in terror as it began, with deliberate slowness, to advance again.

* * *

A/N: Regarding the Lucario titles: "Azur," pronounced "AH-zher," (plural Azurui, "ah-zher-OO-ee") is a title that refers to a Lucario (and _only_ a Lucario: the title is not given to humans who practice the art) who has studied the art of Aura manipulation and combat. It is a gender-neutral title--both male and female Lucario are given the same title. Also mentioned is the title "Lu," commonly rendered "Lu-Lu," which is a diminutive of sorts that implies cuteness and, in some cases, attentiveness or focus.


End file.
